Finance (No. 2) Bill: Reasoned Amendment to Second Reading (Opposition)
118Ayes
340Noes
Defeated · majority 222 · Government won190 did not vote
648 Members · Aye 118 · No 340 · DNV 190 · grey dots in centre are abstentions
Analysis
Commons
Commons
Parliament voted on 16 December 2025 on a Conservative reasoned amendment (Division 393) opposing the Second Reading of the Finance (No. 2) Bill, which gives legal force to Labour's autumn 2025 Budget. A reasoned amendment is a procedural motion that expresses opposition to a bill before it progresses; passing it would have blocked the bill from advancing. The amendment was defeated by 340 votes to 118. The Finance (No. 2) Bill contains a range of measures from the Budget, including the removal of the two-child benefit limit, an increase in the national living wage to £12.71 an hour from April 2026, changes to agricultural property relief and business property relief under inheritance tax, and a rise in employer national insurance contributions. Defeating the amendment allows the bill to proceed through Parliament. The measures affect employers across the economy, farming families facing inheritance tax changes, and low-income families with children who stand to benefit from the benefit cap removal. The vote divided almost entirely along party lines. All 300 Labour MPs and all 36 Labour and Co-operative MPs who voted did so against the amendment. All 104 voting Conservatives backed it, joined by 7 Reform UK MPs, 4 Democratic Unionist Party MPs, and single MPs from Traditional Unionist Voice and Ulster Unionist Party. Three independents voted each way. Sinn Féin's 7 MPs had no vote recorded, consistent with their abstentionist policy of not taking seats at Westminster. The vote sits at the start of the bill's passage; related divisions in March 2026 show the bill subsequently passed its Third Reading by 292 to 161.
Voting Aye meant
Support blocking the Finance Bill, arguing that Labour's Budget — particularly the employer national insurance rise and inheritance tax changes to agricultural property relief — will harm businesses, raise unemployment, and devastate family farms.
Voting No meant
Support the Finance Bill and Labour's Budget, backing measures to lift children out of poverty, raise the minimum wage, invest in public services, and cut borrowing without returning to austerity.
Each row is one party. The stacked bar gives the within-party split of Aye / No / Absent; the columns on the right give the raw counts. The whip column shows the published party position — “Free vote” means the whip was formally removed for this division.
Party
Whip
Aye / No / Abs
Aye
No
Abs
Labour Party
Whipped No
0
300
61
Conservative and Unionist Party
Whipped Aye
104
0
12
Liberal Democrats
—
0
0
71
Labour and Co-operative Party
Whipped No
0
36
6
Independent
—
3
3
7
Scottish National Party
—
0
0
9
Reform UK
Whipped Aye
7
0
1
Sinn Féin
—
0
0
7
Democratic Unionist Party
Whipped Aye
4
0
1
Green Party of England and Wales
—
0
0
4
Plaid Cymru
—
0
0
4
Social Democratic and Labour Party
—
0
0
2
Your Party
—
0
0
2
Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
—
0
0
1
Restore Britain
—
0
0
1
Speaker
—
0
0
1
Traditional Unionist Voice
—
1
0
0
Ulster Unionist Party
—
1
0
0
Source · Hansard · UK Parliament Votes API · whip status from announced positions; “free vote” indicates the whip was formally removed
Defends the Bill as delivering fair choices on cost of living, NHS, poverty reduction, and growth; argues agricultural and business property relief reforms are proportionate with £1m allowance and 20% rate.Labour · Voted no · Read full speech (4,022 words) →
Opposes the Bill as economically reckless, redistributing wealth at the expense of growth incentives; argues inheritance tax changes will devastate family farms and businesses, break PM's promises, and damage investment.Conservative · Voted aye · Read full speech (3,204 words) →
Criticizes the Bill as short-term Treasury tax grabs with no vision; opposes APR/BPR changes as failing to tackle real loopholes, and condemns business rates rises and hospitality tax increases.Liberal Democrat · Voted no_vote_recorded · Read full speech (2,043 words) →
Argues the farming and business inheritance tax changes are arithmetically impossible for businesses with low profit margins; warns of double taxation and job losses.Conservative · Voted aye · Read full speech (2,341 words) →
Supports the Bill's overall direction but will not support APR/BPR proposals; calls for a U-turn on agricultural inheritance tax despite party pressure.Labour · Voted no · Read full speech (426 words) →
Supports the Bill as pro-growth and pro-enterprise; praises enterprise incentive expansions, venture capital trust reforms, and listing relief as enabling UK companies to scale.Labour · Voted no · Read full speech (974 words) →
Wants the government to succeed but deeply concerned APR removal has killed rural investment confidence; calls APR changes a threat to growth in rural and island communities.Scottish National Party · Voted no_vote_recorded · Read full speech (1,427 words) →
Supports the Bill as providing fair balance between taxes and services; argues investment in infrastructure and skills will drive economic growth for small businesses.Labour · Voted no · Read full speech (812 words) →
Sources
Division dataUK Parliament Votes API
DebateHansard · Commons
Stance analysisAI analysis · Claude 4.x
LicenceOpen Parliament Licence v3.0