From Rishi Sunak to Keir Starmer, to President Macron and President Biden, Western leaders on Monday appealed to Israel to exercise restraint following Iran’s drone and missile attack.
The prime minister, addressing MPs, issued a carefully-worded statement that both reiterated unwavering support for Israel while acknowledging the other regional partners – Jordan and Saudi Arabia – who helped in efforts to intercept and destroy almost all the projectiles fired by Iran and its proxies on Saturday.
With all eyes on Israel, allies are publicly co-ordinated and the prime minister on Monday was careful not to go beyond clearly agreed lines to take among allies.
He was determined not to throw a match into the tinderbox as Western powers instead embark upon frantic shuttle diplomacy behind the scenes, with the PM due to speak to Netanyahu, and the Foreign Secretary Lord David Cameron potentially taking a trip to the region.
Because this is a dangerous moment: As the prime minister’s spokesperson said this morning, had the Iranian attack been successful, it’s hard to overestimate the fallout for regional instability.
Having seen off that threat, the aim now is to make sure Israel’s response does not undo their efforts.
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Expressing support for Israel, the PM also said allies must “invest more deeply” in the two-state solution and said the conflict in Gaza “must end” and reiterated the need for new crossings to be opened for longer to let more aid in.
Backbenchers frustrated
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Announcing he would shortly be speaking to Prime Minister Netanyahu, Mr Sunak was clear that in expressing solidarity with Israel, he also stressed “all sides must show restraint”.
But if the PM has his eyes trained on the Middle East, senior backbenchers seemed frustrated on Monday that the UK wasn’t taking a more robust line with Iran.
Suella Braverman, the former home secretary, and Iain Duncan Smith asked the prime minister why the government hadn’t proscribed the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organisation.
Searching questions over tougher sanctions
Meanwhile, former defence secretary Liam Fox asked about tougher sanctions, asking why Iranian banks were still operating in the City or Iran Air at Heathrow – and what could be done to stop the export of Iranian oil to Russia and other countries.
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‘All sides must show restraint’
On this, the prime minister said “active work” was being undertaken and discussions were being held between allies to co-ordinate efforts and move in a manner that has “maximum impact both on the regime and on the ultimate designations of any future sanctions”.
It might well be that further down the line, the prime minister does respond more directly with his backbenchers. But for now, their demands are neither his focus nor his concern.
Sir Keir Starmer has insisted the “vast majority of farmers” will not be affected by changes to Inheritance Tax (IHT) ahead of a protest outside parliament on Tuesday.
It follows Chancellor Rachel Reeves announcing a 20% inheritance tax that will apply to farms worth more than £1m from April 2026, where they were previously exempt.
But the prime minister looked to quell fears as he resisted calls to change course.
Speaking from the G20 summit in Brazil, he said: “If you take a typical case of a couple wanting to pass a family farm down to one of their children, which would be a very typical example, with all of the thresholds in place, that’s £3m before any inheritance tax is paid.”
The comments come as thousands of farmers, including celebrity farmer Jeremy Clarkson, are due to descend on Whitehall on Tuesday to protest the change.
And 1,800 more will take part in a “mass lobby” where members of the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) will meet their MPs in parliament to urge them to ask Ms Reeves to reconsider the policy.
Speaking to broadcasters, Sir Keir insisted the government is supportive of farmers, pointing to a £5bn investment announced for them in the budget.
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He said: “I’m confident that the vast majority of farms and farmers will not be affected at all by that aspect of the budget.
“They will be affected by the £5bn that we’re putting into farming. And I’m very happy to work with farmers on that.”
Sir Keir’s spokesman made a similar argument earlier on Monday, saying the government expects 73% of farms to not be affected by the change.
Environment, Farming and Rural Affairs Secretary Steve Reed said only about 500 out of the UK’s 209,000 farms would be affected, according to Treasury calculations.
However, that number has been questioned by several farming groups and the Conservatives.
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Farming industry is feeling ‘betrayed’ – NFU boss
Government figures ‘misleading’
The NFU said the real number is about two-thirds, with its president Tom Bradshaw calling the government’s figures “misleading” and accusing it of not understanding the sector.
The Country Land and Business Association (CLA) said the policy could affect 70,000 farms.
Conservative shadow farming minister Robbie Moore accused the government last week of “regurgitating” figures that represent “past claimants of agricultural property relief, not combined with business property relief” because he said the Treasury does not have that data.
Agricultural property relief (APR) currently provides farmers 100% relief from paying inheritance tax on agricultural land or pasture used for rearing livestock or fish, and can include woodland and buildings, such as farmhouses, if they are necessary for that land to function.
Farmers can also claim business property relief (BPR), providing 50% or 100% relief on assets used by a trading business, which for farmers could include land, buildings, plant or machinery used by the business, farm shops and holiday cottages.
APR and BPR can often apply to the same asset, especially farmed land, but APR should be the priority, however BPR can be claimed in addition if APR does not cover the full value (e.g. if the land has development value above its agricultural value).
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Mr Moore said the Department for the Environment, Farming and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and the Treasury have disagreed on how many farms will be impacted “by as much as 40%” due to the lack of data on farmers using BPR.
Lib Dem MP Tim Farron said last week1,400 farmers in Cumbria, where he is an MP, will be affected and will not be able to afford to pay the tax as many are on less than the minimum wage despite being asset rich.