Charity responds to latest UK government spending review

World Cancer Research Fund has responded to the UK government’s first multi-year spending review, where the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, set out departmental budgets over the next 3 years.

Under their Health Mission, the government has committed to shifting from sickness to prevention, affirming that prevention is better than cure. This spending review marks a critical opportunity for the government to set out their investment to this commitment.

In this review, the Chancellor committed:

• £29bn for the day-to-day spending of the NHS to 2028–29.
• £80m per year for tobacco cessation programmes and to support the delivery of the Tobacco & Vapes Bill.
• £10bn in NHS technology and digital transformation by 2028–29.
• £22.6bn per year for research and development by 2029–30, including medical research.

Responding to the spending review, World Cancer Research Fund’s Executive Director of Research and Policy, Dr Giota Mitrou, said:

Today the Chancellor reaffirmed Labour’s Health Mission, including their commitment to shift from treatment to prevention. 40% of all cancer cases are preventable: as leading experts in cancer prevention, we know that primary prevention remains the most sustainable and cost-effective way to tackle cancer and other non-communicable diseases.

For example, while we are glad to see that the government will be investing £80m per year to tackle tobacco, we need to see similar efforts applied to obesity and alcohol. The expansion of free school meals is a step in the right direction and the type of action we hope to see in the upcoming 10-year Health Plan.”

> Read our comments on the 10-year Health Plan for England