Farmers' fury as race for £233m funding compared to 'scramble for Oasis tickets'

Thousands of farmers missed out on vital government funding after online applications for a £233m green scheme for the whole of England closed down in under six hours.

Farming and environmental groups condemned the race to secure the sustainable farming incentive (SFI) funding, with some comparing it to a "frantic" online scramble to secure Glastonbury or Oasis gig tickets.

The post-Brexit scheme, which replaced EU subsidies with payments for farmers to look after nature and provide "public goods", opened at 10:00 BST on Tuesday but had run out of budget by 15:48 BST.

The government said farmers had responded "in force" to the scheme and there would be further funding opportunities for 2027.

The National Farmers' Union (NFU) is calling for the government to explain why the scheme opened and closed so quickly, with so many farmers left out of pocket.

It said it wanted "clarity and urgency" from the government and added that it had made "repeated warnings of a lack of sufficient budget".

NFU vice-president Robyn Munt said: "The rapid uptake of the scheme comes as no surprise. Its closure in less than six hours shows the scale of demand there is from farmers to deliver for the environment and to invest in farm resilience.

"The current cashflow pressures facing farmers and growers only exacerbates that demand as they look for certainty and clarity for the year ahead."