I start the year with a confession, albeit one that some people already knew: I am one of the Labour Rural Research Group (LRRG) of backbench MPs that have been lobbying for over a year for changes to the policy of Agricultural Property Relief and Business Property Relief for Inheritance Tax (IHT) that had been proposed – the so-called Family Farm Tax.

For months now I have been talking to backbenchers, treasury officials, government whips, the National Farmers Union (NFU) and local farmers across Camborne, Redruth and Hayle.

It would be completely wrong of me to suggest that I have been acting in isolation. I am just one of several rural MPs, including my Cornish Labour MP colleagues, that have been seeking to make changes to the policy.

As a government MP, quiet diplomacy behind the scenes is significantly more productive than grandstanding speeches and open rebellions. Governments of all persuasions do not take kindly to that. And let me be blunt: for most of us this campaign has not been about political expediency.

We are acutely aware that the farming community has not been a traditional supporter of the Labour Party and I dare say probably won’t be next time. This was not about winning votes.

But for those of us that have lived in rural communities for almost our whole lives (my grandfather’s family farmed at Long Rock) and understand the vital role that our farmers play in our communities, towards our food security and in the careful stewardship of the land, this was about doing the right thing by our small family farms. Many of these businesses may appear asset rich on paper but are in fact cash poor.

I have met dozens of our local farmers and this Friday, January 9, I am meeting our local NFU reps and more farmers. Just before Christmas the government announced a dramatic change to IHT for our farming community meaning that a farming couple can pass down a farm of up to £5-million without paying IHT. This change means that the vast majority of family farms in Cornwall and across the UK will pay no inheritance tax.

As a result of this change, the NFU has ended its Family Farm Tax campaign. But we still have so much to do to focus on farming profitability which, in this country, remains a real issue. The Baroness Batters report on farming profitability was launched just before the Christmas break as well and has a number of recommendations which

I’m keen to support within government. We are also eagerly awaiting the launch of the new Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) and Environmental Land Management Scheme (ELMs) which will also allow farms to access funds to support sustainability and land management.

Many of us in the LRRG still get heavily criticised within our constituencies for not voting against the Government on IHT, but instead for following the NFU’s advice and abstaining. This change in policy was a total vindication of that approach.

I will continue to work with the NFU both locally and nationally to rebuild the health of our farming sector.