UK NHS Gains £29bn Boost Amid Cuts to Defence, Policing

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has outlined a spending review focused on a significant boost to the NHS, with an additional £29 billion annually and a £6 billion investment to accelerate tests, scans, and treatments, aiming to reduce waiting lists and deliver millions more procedures over the next five years. This NHS funding surge is part of a broader plan prioritizing health and capital projects, but it comes with real-terms cuts to other departments including the Home Office, Foreign Office, police, and defence. The defence sector received an £11 billion boost, aimed at developing a 'defence industrial superpower' through investments in munitions and nuclear submarines, but critics argue the allocation is still insufficient to meet rising security threats. Police chiefs and former military leaders have expressed concern that cuts in police and defence budgets could undermine national security and Labour's crime reduction promises. Economists and opposition figures predict inevitable tax increases in the autumn Budget to fund the spending commitments, with worries about long-term fiscal sustainability as government borrowing rises. Reeves maintains the choices represent a commitment to national renewal and investment rather than austerity, emphasizing that taxes will not need to rise to cover the current spending review.