Zack Polanski has called for a basic income for farmers to be introduced, to help those being “being screwed over by the supermarkets or agricultural capital.”
Polanski, who is the frontrunner to become the Green Party’s next leader, said his party would offer a £1,000 a month basic income to some 100,000 farmers.
He said the policy would cost roughly £1.2bn a year and would be funded by making the wealthiest farmers pay more tax.
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Speaking to the Financial Times, Polanski said: “We should be subsidising farmers more generally, because they’re the people who protect the land.”
“In the same way a young person living in a city could be screwed over by an unscrupulous landlord and need rent controls, a farmer in the countryside is often being screwed over by the supermarkets or agricultural capital where the fruits of their labour are not being looked after or invested in.”
In a post on X, Polanski wrote: “It’s time for a basic income for farmers. 20% of the wealthiest landowners receive 80% of the subsidies. Meanwhile the farmers who protect our food security are often just trying to survive.”
The proposal is part of Polanski’s efforts to widen the electoral appeal of the Greens, and would seemingly capitalise on the disaffection large parts of the farming community feel towards the current Labour government.
Keir Starmer announced last year that his government would impose inheritance tax on farmers on properties worth more than £3m.