Last Friday marked the Labour government’s first birthday. Twelve months after securing a near Blair-sized majority, few could have predicted that this celebration would ultimately be so muted. Despite genuine achievements such as arresting the rise in waiting lists and delivering a small but significant reduction, the Labour Party in the summer of 2025 finds itself beset by poor poll ratings, questions over the Chancellor’s future, and internal conflict.
However, on the eve of the anniversary, perhaps the government’s greatest achievement so far was released: the NHS 10-Year Plan.
The plan is the culmination of a rapid diagnosis on taking office: ‘the NHS is broken’, the Health Secretary said in his first official statement in the job. This was quickly followed by the commission of a snap NHS review by Lord Darzi, former Labour Health Minister and author of a previous NHS review. Delivered in September, it confirmed Mr Streeting’s assessment, whose rhetoric then changed to “reform or die”.
Poor policy decisions, a decade of austerity, and the pandemic had all crippled the health service. The remedy, which would form the key themes of the 10-Year Plan, was the so-called three shifts: a move from cure to prevention; care from hospitals to communities; and from analogue to digital. While not revolutionary, these form the basis of a clear call to arms.
Fast forward to late spring, and the release of the Industrial Strategy and Spending Review provided an important backdrop to the plan. The latter protected NHS funding, including welcome pledges on capital investment and digital infrastructure, and boosted the science budget significantly. The Industrial Strategy itself neatly teed up the NHS 10-Year Plan with large funding commitments for Genomics England, for the establishment of the Health Data Research Service, and announced measures to streamline market access and regulation.
Though the NHS-10 Year Plan’s stated aims were well known prior to its release, its eventual publication was met with relief at its ambition. Though it is heavy on vision and aspiration, it is light, if not entirely silent, on delivery. This mixture of optimism mixed with the fear of future disappointment forms the bulk of public reaction, from across the spectrum from industry to policy wonks. The King’s Fund declared that if implemented, the plan would evidently improve the nation’s health but “what matters now is how the next steps turn a vision into reality.” The Health Foundation concurred, stating they “welcome the scale of the government’s ambition. We now await the concrete action needed to turn rhetoric to reality.”
In the absence of a crystal ball, we can only judge the plan on its direction of travel. For our industry, the signs are good. A Neighbour Health Service — bringing testing closer to patients — and an expansion in genomic testing across different populations are policies BIVDA have forcefully advocated for. Recognising value in procurement and accelerating clinical trials are further examples of where government have listened to industry-wide concerns.
On the business front, a year has somewhat upended sympathies towards the new government. Leading up to last year’s election, Labour hoovered up the majority of support from the business community, proudly wheeling out high-profile CEOs at campaign events. Various events since, most notably the hike in national insurance on employment and an expected rise in MHRA fees, have soured relations and been keenly felt by our members. Labour’s frequent refrain that they are on a mission for growth has raised many an eyebrow given these decisions, as well as rumblings about a future wealth tax.
So, what is the diagnosis? Labour’s vision for the NHS, peppered with ideas enabled by diagnostics and measures designed to improve access and adoption, gives our industry many reasons to be cheerful. However, a difficult fiscal picture is clearly of grave concern to businesses large and small. And even if the government’s NHS rescue plan is ambitious, can it be matched by delivery? With junior doctors voting to strike again less than a week after its release, keeping the plan on track will be Messrs Starmer and Streeting’s greatest challenge yet, but also their greatest prize.
