Ex-Tony Blair aide sparks backlash after 'disgraceful' comments about farmers

Emily Price

A former senior Labour advisor has been branded as "disgraceful" after saying farmers should be treated the same way that Margaret Thatcher treated miners.

Tony Blair's former political secretary John McTernan sparked a backlash on Monday night (November 11) after he told a journalist he thought the UK "could do without" small farms.

He made the comments during a televised interview with GB News about Chancellor Rachel Reeves' inheritance tax hike.

It could see small family farms pay up to 159% of their profits in inheritance tax following changes at the Budget.

McTernan has an extensive career in government and has advised prime ministers around the world.

He was also a special adviser to two Cabinet Ministers in Gordon Brown's government and was director of communications for the Australian prime minister, Julia Gillard.

Disgraceful statement from former Labour political advisor John McTernan:

“We can do to the farmers what Thatcher did to the miners. It’s an industry we could do without. We don’t need small farmers.” pic.twitter.com/2MLr46l6GO

— No Farmers, No Food (@NoFarmsNoFoods) November 12, 2024

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'Heavy handed'

In a bizarre interview with Patrick Christys, he said: "Personally I'm in favour in doing to farmers who go out onto the streets what Margaret Thatcher did to the miners."

A shocked Christys asked: "Just to be clear John - you would what? Beat them up?"

The former aide responded: "No of course not - but this is an industry we could do without."

Christys said the interview had "got weird" before asking: "So you would do to farmers what Margaret Thatcher did to miners, which was she used very heavy handed police tactics followed by what? Putting them out of business?"

McTernan replied: "If people are so upset that they want to go out on the streets and spray slurry on them, then we don't need small farmers."

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Strike

In the 1980's, Thatcher was locked into a bitter dispute with thousands of miners and their trade union following plans by her Conservative government to shut 20 coal pits.

187,000 miners went on strike across the country with police officers drafted in to manage picket lines.

Violence broke out at times and the miners' eventual defeat led to a wave of pit closures and thousands of job loses.

Leader of the Senedd Tory group Andrew RT Davies branded the comments "disgraceful" and indicative of how "many people in the Labour Party" feel.

He said: "It’s clear that for many on the left, the anti-farmer agenda is a new frontier in the class war, whereby farmers are being punished for not sharing the metropolitan worldviews of those in London and other cities.

“I will always stand with our farmers, because like most people in Britain, I know that no farmers means no food."