Mixed reaction to chancellor's spending review

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has unveiled the government's spending plans for the coming year, outlining funding plans for the NHS, clinical research and research and development.

Under the plans, the government has promised £3 billion to the NHS, to help it tackle the burgeoning treatment backlog with one million new checks, scans and operations.

The Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) welcomed the move, with its chief executive Richard Torbett saying it sends “an important signal of support for NHS services” hit by the coronavirus pandemic.

“It’s critical that where treatment has been delayed or disrupted, we work together to get it back on track,” he noted, adding that pharma companies “continue to work around the clock to support this work, including how to safely restart start the clinical trials and research affected.”

However, Danny Mortimer, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, described the chancellor's plans as “a Polyfilla budget, which leaves some major cracks unfilled”.

“NHS leaders will cautiously welcome the confirmation that there will be £3 billion of additional funding to tackle the care backlog, the increased demand for mental health services and wider pressures, but it falls far short of the £10 billion that the Health Foundation says is needed,” he said.

“Political leaders will need to manage public expectations, as there is a very real risk to the quality of services that hardworking health and care staff are able to deliver.”

“Our members are very aware of the financial situation the country is facing, and they will see the consequences come through their doors. We need honest conversations about how far this money will go, as it leaves a lot of unfinished business in areas such as public health grants and broader capital investment. The Government needs to come back to this without delay in the new year.”

Anita Charlesworth, the Health Foundation’s Director of Research and REAL Centre, said the funding announced “doesn’t match the scale of the challenge” and will leave NHS facing a total shortfall of around £6 billion next year.

She went on to highlight that Sunak's offering “misses a golden opportunity to tackle longstanding staffing shortages which left the health system so vulnerable in the face of a pandemic”, and that, with regard to adult social services, “there is no investment to allow improvement of the current threadbare safety net of social care or to make the system fairer”.

Elsewhere, the chancellor unveiled a package of £14.6 billion in funding for R&D to strengthen the UK's future as a global leader in science and technology.

“As the government focuses on its growth agenda, it should look to life sciences and make the most of this funding to unlock the future potential of our sector,” Torbett stressed.

“Policies that encourage investment into cutting-edge research – such as delivering on the vision for UK health data – will deliver a triple win: for jobs, for the economy, and for the UK’s world-beating life sciences sector.”

The ABPI also called on the government to set out further plans for the future of the life sciences sector, to “aid in the economic recovery and the UK's resilience against future health threats”, including on capital grants for medicines manufacturing, enhanced R&D tax credits, modernisation of NICE's appraisal methods and investment in preventative care.

Daniel Rathbone, assistant director of CaSE (Campaign for Science and Engineering), also welcomed the funding for R&D. “Given the current economic circumstances, I am really pleased to see the increased investment in R&D in 2021-22 announced by the Chancellor, keeping us on track to reach the government's goal of £22 billion invested in R&D by 2024-25.”

The Spending Review also set out a multi-year settlement for UK Research and Innovation and the National Academies core research budget, which will grow by more than £400 million on average per year until 2023-24.

“This is really positive news because it will allow UKRI to make the most of this investment, protecting and growing the UK's world class research base,” Rathbone added. “I hope this will be followed by multi-year settlements for R&D across Government, when the economic circumstances allow."