Farmers' fury as race for £233m funding compared to 'scramble for Oasis tickets'.</p><p>

Farmers are facing a 'shattering blow' after the sudden closure of the government's £233m green scheme for sustainable farming, with many left out of pocket and forced to scramble for alternative funding.

The SFI 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.

Thousands of farmers missed out on vital government funding due to the short notice and lack of sufficient budget, with many facing a desperate race against time to secure their funding agreements.

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. The union has made repeated warnings of a lack of sufficient budget and has urged the government to provide further clarity on future opportunities for funding applications.

The Wildlife Trusts have also condemned the closure of the scheme, saying it was due to inadequate funding and insufficient resources to support the environmental benefits of the SFI scheme.

Setting aside any personal feelings or emotions, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has stated that they will provide further information on future opportunities for funding applications in 2027 'soon'.

A Defra spokesperson said: 'This year we ensured small farms and those new to SFI were prioritised - with an exclusive first window in the summer. In anticipation of high demand in the second window, ministers decided to allocate an additional £20m to the fund, on top of the £50m announced by the prime minister in August, so that we could fund as many agreements as possible. 'For farmers who have turned large swathes of their land over to nature-friendly schemes, such as planting hedges, creating wildflower margins and protecting the soil, the SFI scheme is vital for environmental benefits.

However,