Sir Keir Starmer is under growing pressure to meet farmers over the impact of his inheritance tax raid.

On Tuesday, Tom Bradshaw, the president of the National Farmers’ Union (NFU), called for talks with the Prime Minister and Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor.

Labour councillors have joined political opponents in demanding that Downing Street agrees to a meeting as a backlash against the policy grows.

In the Budget, Ms Reeves ended the situation in which all farmers could pass on their farms without paying inheritance tax, with estates worth more than £1 million now in line for a tax bill.

It emerged on Monday that farmers were considering “militant” action in protest against the move. Earlier this year, tractors brought Parliament Square to a standstill in a protest over imports.

Mr Bradshaw told The Telegraph: “We would be delighted to have a meeting with Keir Starmer or Rachel Reeves.

“I’m convinced if we could have half an hour with either, we can talk them through the unintended consequences of this policy, both the human impact and the impact on food production.”

Mr Bradshaw met Steve Reed, the Environment Secretary, on Monday but no change in the Government’s position was announced and ministers defended the farms tax raid.

The Liberal Democrats, who have called the changes to agricultural property relief a “tractor tax”, are calling for Sir Keir and Ms Reeves to meet farmers.

Tim Farron, the Lib Dems’ environment spokesman, said: “The Government just does not get it. The livelihoods of family farmers are hanging by a thread whilst the Government ploughs ahead with this disastrous policy.

“The Chancellor and Prime Minister need to take their fingers out of their ears, sit down with the NFU, listen to their concerns and scrap this disastrous family farm tax.”

A Labour councillor from a rural part of England told The Telegraph: “They absolutely should [meet the NFU]. They’re not doing themselves no favours. They’ll get beaten on a landslide [at the next election].

“I’m not a Tory – I come from six generations of coal miners – but they’ve been doing some strange things. There’s other ways of doing it, but I’m not happy about it. I support farmers – they provide our food.”

A second rural Labour councillor told The Telegraph: “I would always agree with negotiation. They call Lincolnshire the county that feeds the country. We should be looking after our farmers.”

Number 10 has so far resisted agreeing to a meeting. Asked on Tuesday whether Sir Keir and Ms Reeves would sit down with the NFU, a Downing Street spokesman said the Government was “always listening to the sector”, but refused to make any firm commitments.