The Agri Brigade
T
HE sight of convoys of tractors descending on Westminster earlier this year gave the strong impression these protests were solely concerned with the proposed introduction of inheritance tax on farmland. But the demos have been about a whole series of perceived threats to farmers’ livelihoods, including the rapidly rising cost of… repairing tractors.
Until recently, many repairs were done on farm, either by the farmer or by a visit from a local agricultural engineer. Today, with just about all the functions of a modern tractor being run by computer, repairs have inevitably become more challenging. Farmers now have to call out an engineer with a laptop and access codes to diagnose a problem by hooking up to the tractor’s computer. Indeed, farmers complain that they’re being encouraged to stop carrying out even routine maintenance like oil changes.