Why is Labour making rural families pay for their ballooning benefits bill?

Asking Labour's Secretary of State for Defra, Emma Reynolds how much money has she budgeted for the June and September phases of SFI? And why is Labour are taxing hard-working farmers, pub landlords, rural businesses and communities to pay for Labour’s ballooning benefits bill? *** Victoria Atkins MP at Defra oral questions on Thursday 4 June 2026. Read HERE 👉 https://tinyurl.com/mpcfwtr6 *** VA: May I, too, wish Sir David Attenborough a belated happy 100th birthday and congratulate Hawkstone Farmers’ Choir on winning “Britain’s Got Talent”? They are both best in show. After a year of dither, delay and record farm closures, the new sustainable farming incentive scheme will finally start at the end of this month. How much money has the Secretary of State budgeted for the June and September phases of her scheme? ER: We will make that clear at the time of opening. VA: Sorry—the Government have just published the documentation for a scheme that starts in the three weeks’ time, but the Secretary of State cannot tell us how much of her budget is being spent on it. Then again, we know that Labour is the party of “Who can we tax in order to pay benefits to others?”. From the family farm and the family business taxes to the fertiliser tax, business rates and national insurance hikes, why should hard-working farmers, pub landlords, rural businesses and communities be pushed to the brink to pay for Labour’s ballooning benefits bill? ***