Tom Bradshaw (farmer)

Tom Bradshaw
President of the National Farmers' Union of England and Wales
In office
2024–present
Preceded byMinette Batters
Personal details
SpouseEmily Bradshaw
Children2
OccupationFarmer

Thomas William Bradshaw (born July 1982)[1] is a British farmer who has served as president of the National Farmers' Union of England and Wales since 2024.[2]

Family and education

Bradshaw was born in 1982 to David and Alison Bradshaw, who ran a family-owned arable and dairy farm in Fordham, Essex.[3] He has an older and a younger brother.[4] He was educated at nearby Colchester Royal Grammar School and earned a degree in agricultural business management from Imperial College at Wye in Kent.[5]

Bradshaw and his wife Emily are the parents of two children.[5]

Career

After graduating from university, Bradshaw took over the management of his family's farm in North Essex while also operating a contract farming business covering 950 hectares of combinable crops, including wheat, barley and oilseed rape.[3] He helped to diversify the business away from dairy farming to include equestrian activities and renewable energy production.[2][4]

In 2010 Bradshaw was awarded a Nuffield farming scholarship, enabling him to observe agricultural practices in the United States, Australia, New Zealand and Europe.[3][4]

Bradshaw joined the combinable crops board of the National Farmers' Union of England and Wales (NFU) in 2014 and became chair of its national crops board in 2018. In 2019 he was appointed NFU vice-president, then deputy president. He was elected president of the NFU in February 2024.[2][6]

In November 2024 Bradshaw gave a speech at Church House in London during protests by farmers against the government's plans to change inheritance tax on agricultural land.[7][8][9]

References

  1. ^ United Kingdom Company Information Service, Thomas William Bradshaw. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
  2. ^ a b c National Farmers Union, Profiles: Tom Bradshaw, NFU President. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
  3. ^ a b c BBC Two, Harvest, Tom Bradshaw. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
  4. ^ a b c Daily Telegraph, "NFU President: Farmers are feeling let down – and it’s Labour that could reap the rewards", 6 April 2024. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
  5. ^ a b "'It's pretty gloomy out there': new NFU chief Tom Bradshaw fights to give food producers a better deal". The Guardian. 30 April 2024. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
  6. ^ East Anglian Daily Times, "Essex farmer becomes one of NFU's youngest presidents", 23 February 2024. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
  7. ^ National Farmers Union, "Mass lobby – NFU President's speech in full", 19 November 2024. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
  8. ^ Daily Telegraph, "Farmers’ pension plans at risk from Chancellor’s inheritance tax raid", 18 November 2024. Retrieved 20 November 2024.
  9. ^ Independent, "Farming inheritance tax changes ‘straw that broke camel’s back’ – NFU chief", 18 November 2024. Retrieved 20 November 2024.