The Chancellor’s latest Spending Review has landed with a clear signal: investment in NHS technology is essential.
Alongside a 3 per cent annual real-terms rise in overall NHS funding, the government has committed to an almost 50 per cen increase in the NHS tech budget.
Ahead of the highly anticipated announcement of the NHS 10 Year Plan, the decision marks a decisive nod to digital enablement as a core strategy for development, progression and modernisation.
In this article, influential health tech leaders from across the country share their thoughts on the news.
Dr Harry Thirkettle, Director of Health and Innovation, Aire Logic
With limited fiscal headroom and rising dissatisfaction in public services, this comprehensive spending review was always going to make difficult decisions.
From a health perspective, the injection of day-to-day funding and a 50 per cent increase in tech budget is welcome as the service seeks to recover from the years of austerity.
But increased budget – even if ‘modest’ in real-terms sets public expectation higher.
And the public will expect services to deliver; not on headlines, but by how it feels when they engage with the health and care system.
Targeted tech funding and additional investment to accelerate innovation across life sciences are positive.
I hope a good proportion of this goes to SMEs who are the beating heart of innovation.
As a sector we need to pull together and ensure every pound is spent wisely, for the greatest benefit of patients and staff, including improving neglected digital infrastructure that is the foundation on which transformation is built.
I note that budgets for this infrastructure appear to have remained mostly flat which creates a risk.
I hope in five years’ time we reflect on money well spent, rather than bemoan more wasted opportunities.
Rich Pugmire, CEO, Answer Digital
The funding announcement, including the NHS technology budget increase, from the Chancellor’s Spending Review is essential but this alone won’t solve the NHS’s challenges and pressures.
Progression must go hand-in-hand with funding to ensure real impact, the NHS needs to advance and embrace opportunities ahead through conscientious transformation alongside investment.
As we anticipate the 10-Year Health Plan, leaders must leverage existing resources smartly and responsibly.
One of the real tasks ahead is identifying and deploying innovative AI data solutions that work across the breadth of diverse processes and legacy tech within the health service, the NHS must leverage industry partnerships to take best advantage of this opportunity.
Dr Rachael Grimaldi, CEO, CardMedic
While any increased investment in our healthcare system is welcome, I’m particularly concerned about where innovation, digital transformation and the commitment to reducing health inequalities sit within this spending.
If funding does reach innovation projects, where’s the guarantee of follow-on investment?
It’s all well and good giving initiatives money for three years, but meaningful healthcare transformation requires sustained commitment beyond initial pilot phases.
The real challenge lies in bridging the substantial gap between what clinicians and innovators want to deliver and what the NHS infrastructure can actually support.
Without addressing the systemic issues around procurement, delivery, and long-term strategic planning, increased funding alone won’t solve the complexities we face.
My hope is that this investment creates genuine pathways for transformation – but it will require more than financial commitment.
It demands structural reform, clear accountability and a commitment to seeing projects through to full implementation.
Only then can we truly transform patient experience and healthcare delivery across the country.
Kath Dean, President, Cloud21
The Chancellor’s announcement to increase the NHS technology budget by almost 50 per cent, with £10bn of investment, is a clear signal of intent to modernise our health system.
The foundations have been laid. Digital maturity is improving, and we’re entering a new phase of moving from reactive care to predictive, preventative models.
This is the key to unlocking efficiencies and driving better outcomes.
It’s important to note that transformation doesn’t end at go-live.
Digital maturity is a lifecycle. Technology must evolve with the system, and we must continue to support frontline teams to adapt, embed change, and maximise value.
It’s imperative that we align technology to purpose, close the gap between digital tools and their promised benefits, and ensure we’re not just investing in tech — but in outcomes.
That means helping clinical and operational staff work differently in a digital environment, and focusing relentlessly on improving patient safety and care.
The investment is a huge opportunity and we’re committed to supporting the NHS to deliver a resilient, digitally-enabled system that bridges the gap between technology and clinical to drive patient-centred care, improve outcomes and digital productivity.
Daniel Park, CEO, In Touch Now
This funding commitment represents a crucial step toward addressing the NHS workforce crisis that has left patient satisfaction at record lows.
The government’s recognition that we need substantial investment to “fix the NHS” is welcome, but in 2025, that investment can now go further than ever through intelligent use of AI technology.
As highlighted in recent analysis, AI voice agents alone could free up 29 million GP appointments and reduce receptionist workload by 30 per cent, allowing every pound spent on new doctors and nurses to deliver maximum impact.
Rather than simply throwing money at the problem, we need to combine workforce investment with operational AI that handles routine tasks, freeing clinical staff for the complex, empathetic care that truly requires human expertise.
The future of healthcare isn’t about replacing humans with technology but using AI to amplify human capabilities and make every healthcare professional more effective.
Phil Bottle, Co-founder and Managing Director, SARD
While talk of tens of billions of pounds investment over the medium term is positive, in the short-term things are going to get tougher.
The bulk of additional money for our health service will likely be used to repair crumbling staff relationships and infrastructure.
However, senior leaders at DHSC and NHSE have spoken about no funding without accountability and value. But how will we assess value for money five years from now? For me, value for money should be evaluated through improved efficiency, and a better experience for patients.
Currently though, wastage is everywhere, as many healthcare providers are working blind when it comes to capacity.
Without accurate, timely visibility of who is working within each organisation and what their specific roles entail, the ability to right-size staffing and align resources ethically with patient demand remains impossible. Improving data quality across clinical, technical, and administrative roles is vital to understanding the capacity that exists, and the productivity levels required to deliver the experience patients will expect.
Michael Ristau, Vice President, Solventum Health Information Systems
The £10bn uplift to the NHS technology budget signals a clear commitment to digital transformation at scale – prioritising enterprise-grade, AI-powered solutions that can integrate with major EPRs and beyond.
The investment is expected to support technologies with proven scalability across large NHS trusts, robust architecture to meet system-wide needs, and workflow-enhancing tools such as ambient, speech-driven, and auto-coding solutions.
With support from dedicated development and training resources, these platforms can accelerate enterprise adoption, reduce inefficiencies and deliver measurable improvements in care, accuracy, and operational performance.
Nick Wilson, CEO, System C
While increased spending in health and social care is welcome, it won’t solve the fundamental problem: demand continues to outstrip supply.
Our most powerful tool to bridge this gap is innovation, especially AI.
We can dramatically boost productivity and quality using AI by eliminating “busy work” that no one wants to do. Clinicians and social workers didn’t enter their professions to spend hours on documentation.
Our data shows that while standalone AI tools offer a 15 per cent time saving, integrating them directly into core systems unlocks their full 30 per cent potential.
These tools need to be part of the core system of record to free up more time for people to focus on what matters.
Julian Coe, Managing Director, X-on Health
The NHS budget boost in today’s Spending Review is welcome and if combined with the delivery of the upcoming 10 Year Health Plan can translate into real progress that patients feel and experience.
The NHS must move on from being focused on the preservation of the current status.
In primary care, the patient dissatisfaction with access to GPs won’t simply vanish through increased national funding or one-size-fits-all solutions.
Real change happens at the practice and neighbourhood level through ground-level work to simplify technology with better-integrated tools to embed ongoing workflow improvement through real operational support.
Technology providers like ourselves need to play their part and step up to enable providers to effect change.
Rachael Fox, Executive Vice President, UK & EMEA at Altera Digital Health
It’s encouraging to see the Chancellor’s spending review place a strong emphasis on additional health funding, with a proportion towards technology.
With the NHS under significant strain, the question remains: will this investment be enough?
Time will tell.
In the meantime, it’s crucial that this welcome injection into technology is directed wisely — towards areas that will deliver the greatest value and tangible impact.
One of the most promising opportunities lies in the investment and optimisation of integrated Electronic Patient Record (EPR) systems, which are key to unlocking improvements in both care delivery and productivity.
To maximise the impact of this funding and support the Government’s transformation ambitions, we believe that organisations will need strong digital foundations and be supported by flexible EPRs which will play a crucial role in realising future opportunities and benefits.
By embracing interoperable, EPR-agnostic, and modular solutions, NHS trusts can build on existing technologies at pace — ensuring greater value and long-term sustainability.
