JEREMY Clarkson today slammed his former employer over its coverage of the farmers’ protest.
The former Top Gear presenter is among 10,000 farmers protesting Labour’s so-called ‘tractor tax’, announced in the Autumn Budget.
Jeremy Clarkson slams the BBC during a live interview[/caption]
Clarkson spoke to Newsnight’s Victoria Derbyshire surrounded by farmers[/caption]
He accused the Beeb of being a ‘mouthpiece’[/caption]
During a fiery interview with Victoria Derbyshire he angrily said: “Typical BBC. You people.”
Later, during a separate speech, as he addressed protesting farmers, he said: “Since when was the BBC the mouthpiece of this infernal Government?”
Mr Clarkson, 64, accused the Newsnight host of failing to be impartial in her reporting of the Government’s inheritance tax grab.
Desperate farmers have driven their tractors on the capital to show their dismay at Chanceller Rachel Reeves’ plan to limit existing 100% inheritance tax relief on farms to only the first £1million.
Ms Derbyshire asked Mr Clarkson: “So, it’s not about you, your farm and to avoid inheritance attack?”
The Clarkson’s Farm and Grand Tour star rolled his eyes and said: “Classic BBC there. Classic.”
Ms Derbyshire responded “is it?” before referencing an article Mr Clarkson had written in the Sunday Times in 2021 about the tax benefits of buying a farm.
The presenter said: “Typical BBC. You people.”
He disputed Ms Derbyshire’s claim it was a “fact” he bought his farm in Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire, for tax purposes, before adding that she was simply expressing her “opinion”.
He went on to joke she had formed her views at the same “sixth form debating society” as Ms Reeves.
Mr Clarkson then laughed when Ms Derbyshire said: “I am not expressing opinions I am literally asking you questions.”
The BBC journalist then repeated the Chancellor’s claims that inheritance tax going up would “raise money for public services”.
Mr Clarkson then turned to the crowds of farmers and asked: “Are you listening to this?”
Explaining his purchase of his farm he said: “Let’s start from the beginning I wanted to shoot, which comes with the benefit of not paying inheritance tax, now I do.
“People like me will simply put it in a trust, and so long as I live for seven years that’s fine.
“As my daughter says, you might be in a deep freeze at the end of it, but you will live for seven years.
“It is incredibly time consuming to have to do that, why should all these people have to do that, why should they?”
He argued the rise had been brought in, to “stop wealthy people”.
Ms Derbyshire then asked “where should they get their money from if not farmers?” to which Clarkson replied: “Did you hear that everyone? BBC thinks you should be paying for everything.”
He added: “Do you know how many people pay inheritance tax in this country?
“Four per cent pay inheritance tax, 96 per cent of the population of the UK does not pay inheritance tax. After this becomes a law, 96 per cent of farmers will.”
Asked where he’d got his figure from, Mr Clarkson turned to the crowd of farmers and said: “Who here is going to be unaffected by these changes? No one.”
He went on to say his message to the Government is: “Please back down… they’ve got £40billion, I’ll tell you where to get the money from, walk into any offices around here, if you don’t understand what somebodies’ job is, fire them.”
