'Patronising!' Welsh First Minister blasted for 'lacking basic empathy' after urging farmers to 'calm down' over tax row
WATCH: Nigel Farage backs farmer fury in stark Labour warning ahead of planned protests
GB NEWS
Welsh First Minister Eluned Morgan has been labelled "patronising" after telling farmers worried by Labour's inheritance tax raids to "calm down".
Baroness Morgan had said only a "tiny proportion" of farms would be impacted by the tax raids - but admitted the number was still being assessed.
With a tractor protest outside Labour's Welsh conference set for November 16, the First Minister told the BBC: "I just think we should just all calm down a bit until we are clear about how many farms will be affected."
Her calls for calm have provoked the opposite - farmers are furious, and Senedd opponents have labelled her "out of touch".
A tractor protest outside Labour's Welsh conference is set for November 16
PA
Plaid Cymru's Cefin Campbell said farmers were "rightfully worried about the impact Labour's Budget will have on them".
Campbell added: "Telling them to calm down - really? How much more out of touch can you get?"
He said the Baroness Morgan should "demand the UK Labour government scrap the changes to inheritance tax and ensure fair funding for agriculture".
While Andrew RT Davies, the Conservative leader in the Welsh Senedd, said her remarks "show how little this Labour Welsh Government understands the rural community".
FARMERS FIGHT BACK - READ MORE:
Eluned Morgan told farmers worried by Labour's inheritance tax raids to 'calm down'
PA
Davies also warned that "this new death tax might well spell the end for family farms", adding: "This decision has to be reversed, because no farmers means no food."
While Mo Metcalf-Fisher, the director of external affairs at the Countryside Alliance, said: "Talk about misjudging the public mood.
"These patronising comments suggest the First Minister is lacking in basic empathy for the people that feed us and maintain our countryside, despite the many obstacles in their way.
"Rather than tell farmers how to behave, perhaps the Government should prioritise clearing up exactly how many farms will be affected by this appalling family farm tax.
Andrew RT Davies said Morgan's remarks 'show how little this Labour Welsh Government understands the rural community'
PA"This is increasingly becoming a political and PR crisis!"
Hundreds of farmers are set to descend on the Welsh Labour conference in Llandudno on Saturday, with many expected to bring tractors, muck spreaders and other equipment into the town.
Then, just three days later, thousands are slated to protest on Parliament Square on Tuesday, with organisers threatening direct action if ministers fail to listen to farmers' demands.
GB News has approached Welsh Labour for comment.
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