The government’s Spring Budget 2025, delivered by Rachel Reeves, Chancellor of the Exchequer, in the House of Commons on Wednesday, 26 March 2025, has drawn criticism from healthcare professionals and industry leaders.
Many argue that the budget neglects critical areas such as social care and public health funding.
One of the main criticisms revolves around the government's limited attention to healthcare in the Spring Budget
While the budget includes major welfare cuts and structural changes to the NHS, experts fear these moves could deepen existing health inequalities.
Reactions from the experts
Minimal focus on healthcare
One of the main criticisms revolves around the government's limited attention to healthcare in the Spring Budget.
Alison Gardiner, CEO of Sleepstation, a mental health service, pointed out that while there was a brief mention of National Health Service England (NHSE) being scrapped and the reallocation of savings to patient care, the lack of significant structural changes is troubling.
“Healthcare was largely absent from the Spring Budget, with only a brief mention of NHSE being scrapped and the savings allocated to patient care,” Gardiner said. “While additional funding is always welcome, the structural changes required are likely to be both costly and time-consuming, leaving the real-world benefits uncertain.”
She emphasised the opportunity for health tech, particularly digital health solutions, to play a transformative role in boosting productivity and supporting the economy.
Millions of working days lost to conditions such as insomnia
With millions of working days lost to conditions such as insomnia, digital solutions could alleviate this issue and support the workforce.
“With an estimated 14 million working days lost annually to conditions such as insomnia and poor sleep, proven digital health solutions—already available on the NHS in England and through employers—can make a tangible difference.
By helping individuals stay in or return to work, the technologies with large-scale real-world evidence directly align with the government’s objectives of boosting productivity and supporting economic recovery,” Gardiner added.
Social Care has been overlooked
In a similar vein, Steve Wightman, General Manager at Access HSC, a division of the business software company, the Access Group, expressed disappointment over the absence of social care funding in the Spring Budget.
While acknowledging that NHS funding was a priority in the previous Autumn Budget, Wightman stated that social care continues to be overlooked despite its ongoing crisis.
“With the NHS being one of the primary beneficiaries in the Autumn Budget, it’s not wholly surprising there was little mention in the Spring Budget. However, it is disappointing to see social care being overlooked again,” he said.
The potential of AI in healthcare, stressing that ethical AI could be used to drive efficiencies
Wightman noted the missed opportunity to include social care in the £3.25 billion transformation fund designed to improve public services.
He also highlighted the potential of AI in healthcare, stressing that ethical AI could be used to drive efficiencies and free up time for healthcare professionals to focus on patient care.
“Particularly given the Chancellor has allocated some of this fund to pioneering AI. While there is value in using it to modernise the state, the use of ethical AI in health and social care is a prime example of where tech can drive efficiencies and release the capacity of health and care professionals to have more time to look after their patients/clients,” Wightman added.
AI in healthcare
The debate around AI and its role in healthcare was echoed by Julian Coe, MD at X-on Health, a specialist in cloud-based telephony solutions for the healthcare sector.
Coe welcomed the Chancellor’s commitment to driving efficiency through AI but urged the government to focus on UK-based companies pioneering world-class AI solutions.
“The Chancellor’s commitment to driving efficiency through AI is encouraging and understandable. I would implore all governments to keep our data sovereign and use the wonderful companies we have in this country pioneering world-class AI solutions,” Coe said.
One of the most controversial aspects of the budget is the government’s plans for welfare cuts
However, he warned against viewing technology as a cure-all, stressing that effective implementation is key.
“It is too simple though to assume that procuring technology will be the answer because unless it’s the right technology correctly implemented, it will not deliver any benefits,” he added. “There are plenty of proven examples of change initiatives that can deliver both cost savings and better patient care. These need to be deployed at scale.”
Welfare cuts and the risk of widening health inequalities
One of the most controversial aspects of the budget is the government’s plans for welfare cuts, which have sparked fears of worsening health inequalities.
Rachael Fox, Executive Vice President at Altera Digital Health, a global healthcare IT company, voiced her concerns about how these cuts might impact public health.
“It’s disappointing to hear that welfare cuts will be widened by the Chancellor in the Spring Statement. This will cause significant concern to many people and undoubtedly have an impact on health inequalities and patient outcomes,” she said.
The changes need to be carefully managed to ensure technology and innovation improvements are fast-tracked to the front line of healthcare delivery and not hindered
While she acknowledged the need for efficiency in the NHS, Fox stressed that digital solutions must be implemented properly to prevent further disparities.
“The changes need to be carefully managed to ensure technology and innovation improvements are fast-tracked to the front line of healthcare delivery and not hindered,” she explained. “Integrated EPRs are fundamental enablers to join up data and care across ICSs. With the welfare cuts, they are even more critical to support effective population health management to combat any knock-on effects to health inequalities and patient outcomes.”
Concerns over NHS structural changes
Chris Davies, CEO at The Institute of Clinical Science and Technology, also raised concerns over the potential consequences of structural changes within the NHS, particularly the abolition of NHS England.
“The vision for a more efficient state and investment in automation has potential benefits for healthcare, but structural changes must not come at the expense of patient care,” he said.
The Spring Budget’s healthcare provisions have left many within the sector with more questions than answers
Davies warned that reducing the health element of Universal Credit could exacerbate health inequalities.
“Financial hardship is a key driver of poor health, and these cuts may increase pressure on frontline services,” he stated. “A truly effective strategy must prioritize both clinical care and wider social determinants of health.”
The impact on NHS workforce and operations
Phil Bottle, Managing Director at SARD, a software company, pointed to the potential strain on NHS staff caused by reforms.
While fewer bureaucratic layers may be seen as a positive step, Bottle cautioned that eliminating support services, operational professionals, and managers could burden clinicians with tasks outside their core responsibilities.
“While less bureaucracy and duplication are to be celebrated, taking away support services, experienced operational professionals, and good managers will increase the burden on clinicians who will be left to spin more plates than they were before,” he said.
As the government moves forward with its plans, it will need to ensure that these changes are not only efficient but also equitable and sustainable
Without proper workforce visibility and resource alignment, he warned, the NHS could struggle to meet patient demands.
“Without accurate, timely visibility of who is working within the NHS and what their specific roles entail, the ability to right-size staffing and align resources ethically with patient demand remains limited,” he added. “Improving data quality across clinical, technical, and administrative roles is vital to understanding productivity levels across care pathways, especially in community services where data gaps are widest.”
A mixed response to the healthcare plans in the Spring Budget
Overall, the Spring Budget’s healthcare provisions have left many within the sector with more questions than answers.
While there is some optimism around the potential role of AI and digital health solutions, concerns about the underfunding of social care, welfare cuts, and the long-term consequences of structural changes persist.
As the government moves forward with its plans, it will need to ensure that these changes are not only efficient but also equitable and sustainable for both healthcare professionals and the patients they serve.