Have your say! Should British farmers be protesting in the streets?

British farmers are fuming over alterations to the inheritance tax regulations, and are planning a mass protest in London tomorrow (November 19). Figures such as Jeremy Clarkson are anticipated to attend the demonstration outside Parliament in opposition to these tax changes, despite Whitehall officials confirming there's no intention to rollback on the measures introduced in the recent Autumn Budget.

Have your say! Should farmers be protesting about the inheritance tax changes? Should they fall in line with other types of business? What do you think about threats to block roads? Comment below, and join in on the conversation.

Revelations from October indicated that farms worth more than £1 million would fall subject to inheritance tax, a shift from previous exemptions. The government defended its stance by stating the aim was to plug "loopholes" within the complex inheritance tax framework and to make difficult decisions essential for the funding of significant public sector initiatives for the upcoming five years.

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The issue has created friction between rural communities and the Labour government, prompting a succession of countrywide protests from farmers and their allies to pressure the Prime Minister into a retreat. A protest coinciding with a Welsh Labour conference took place over the weekend, with another scheduled for Tuesday this week in London.

Describing the taxation change as a "Family Farm Tax", the National Farmer's Union (NFU), which claims to represent upwards of 45,000 enterprises, has mounted vocal opposition. Their petition to overturn the new legislation is rapidly approaching 200,000 signatures.

The petition states: "If this tax change goes ahead, it will deal a hammer blow to farming families, after decades of tightening margins, record inflation, extreme weather and increased production costs, many farmers and growers are at breaking point, unable to absorb any more cost burden. This matters because it has the potential to reduce UK food production and alongside the increases in employment costs, the cost of food production rises, with many people still facing a cost-of-living crisis."

Farming Minister Daniel Zeichner responded by saying: "I urge people to look calmly at the detail and I think they will find that the vast majority will be fine. The figures from the Treasury are very clear: under 500 farms a year are likely to be affected and I would say to people, take advice because every person's situation is different and there will be many, many people who will find they are not actually going to be caught by this."

However, some farmers and influential figures have suggested more drastic actions, which are not endorsed by the NFU. One such proposal circulating on social media involves using farming equipment to obstruct roads or ports - but 'wilful obstruction of the highway' is a criminal offence, as other protest groups have shown in recent years.

Farmers are also considering a further tactic of holding back produce to exert pressure on the government by compromising food security. However, Transport Minister Louise Haigh has assured that the government is prepared for such an event, stating: "The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs will be setting out plans for the winter and setting out - as business as usual - contingency plans and ensuring that food security is treated as the priority it deserves to be."

Have your say! Should farmers be protesting about the inheritance tax changes? Should they fall in line with other types of business? What do you think about threats to block roads? Comment below, and join in on the conversation.