Category Archives: Investment

NHS Recovery and Productivity: Diagnostics are the place to start

Drawing on his experience as a Health Minister and Chair of the Health and Social Care Select Committee, GK’s strategic advisor Steve Brine argues that diagnostics are the critical but often overlooked foundation of NHS recovery, productivity and prevention.

Diagnostics rarely grab headlines in the way that waiting lists do. Yet during my time as a Health Minister, and later as Chair of the Health and Social Care Select Committee, I came to a simple conclusion – if you want to improve outcomes, reduce elective waits and modernise the NHS, they are the place to start.

The reality is that no patient can begin the right treatment until the clinicians know what is wrong. Whether it is cancer, heart disease or a musculoskeletal problem, diagnosis is the gateway through which every effective pathway runs.

Too often, however, diagnostics are viewed as a ‘supporting service’ rather than the critical infrastructure on which the entire system rests.

That is why I have been encouraged by the development of Community Diagnostic Centres (CDC’s) under the last government and continued under this administration.

The concept is straightforward but powerful; bring scans, tests and investigations closer to where people live, rather than requiring patients to navigate busy acute hospitals. It is one of the clearest examples of the much-discussed shift from hospital to community becoming more than words on a page and something that patients can see.

When I was a Minister, we spoke frequently about prevention and early intervention. Now it’s the talk of the town.

For my money, diagnostics sit at the heart of both. A CT scan, MRI scan or PET scan (Positron Emission Tomography, which is particularly important in cancer diagnosis and treatment planning) is not simply a test. It is an opportunity to identify disease earlier, provide reassurance quicker, and avoid patients deteriorating while waiting for answers.

As Select Committee Chair, I often heard evidence about the pressures facing the NHS workforce and the challenge of delivering constitutional standards. The current debate about the 18-week elective target is important, but it is worth remembering that elective recovery ultimately depends on diagnostic recovery. You cannot clear waiting lists if patients are waiting months for scans, endoscopy or reporting.

That is why diagnostics should be seen as a productivity issue as much as a clinical one. Faster access to tests means quicker clinical decisions, more efficient use of outpatient appointments and better use of operating theatres. Every delayed diagnosis creates friction elsewhere in the system and, most important of all, spikes anxiety in patients. The dreaded diagnosis ‘odyssey’.

The challenge now is ensuring that CDC’s become a permanent part of NHS infrastructure rather than simply a waiting-list initiative. That means investing not only in buildings and scanners, but also in the workforce; radiographers, radiologists etc.

If ministers are serious about restoring performance (which as we will explore further in this series of blogs I am writing for GK Strategy is only part of the story), improving cancer outcomes and delivering care closer to home, it’s hard to look past diagnostics as the place where the next chapter of NHS reform must begin.

Will the Chancellor’s ‘securonomics’ strategy drive growth in a new age of instability?

Throughout her time as Chancellor, Rachel Reeves has insisted that the government’s main objective is to facilitate economic growth. During her Mais Lecture on 17 March 2026, Reeves set out a vision for long-term economic growth, using the speech as an opportunity to highlight the ways in which the government will overcome challenges such as fiscal constraints, low productivity, and global instability.

Reeves reaffirmed her belief in ‘securonomics’, an economic strategy where the government helps individuals and businesses gain economic security by investing strategically in sectors like technology, financial services, science and infrastructure. Reeves emphasised that the government needed to play a more active role in guiding investment given the impact of the middle east conflict on the global economy. She stated that market disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ukraine-Russia war, and the US-Israel war with Iran meant that ‘globalisation, as we once knew it, is dead’. As a result, the government would need to find balance between building resilient public services and facilitating private sector growth, as well as a balance between importing goods and products from other countries and bolstering domestic supply chains.

A central theme of the lecture was the ‘big choices’ the government is making to shape the UK economy over the next decade. The Chancellor placed significant emphasis on securing closer ties with the EU, arguing that it was essential for future growth. She stated that a closer alignment could reduce trade barriers. Reeves acknowledged that Brexit has had a negative impact on the UK economy, a shift from previous years where she had shied away from being overtly critical of Brexit. Reeves stopped short of expressing support for rejoining the EU, instead stating that the UK could find greater alignment with Brussels on policy, while still operating outside the EU’s formal structures. If the government is successful in forming a closer relationship with the EU, she remarked, it could ease the administrative and customs costs for businesses importing from and exporting to the European Union.

While business owners will be pleased to see the Chancellor discussing reducing trade barriers with the EU, Reeves’ attempt to set out a vision for regulatory alignment with the EU may be more concerning for businesses. Reeves said that the government would be prepared to align with EU regulation where it is in the ‘national interest’ to do so, and would maintain regulatory autonomy in sectors with strategic importance for the UK. However, this ignores the post-Brexit reality – the UK and the EU are growing apart on their regulatory goals.

Recent UK governments have increasingly highlighted their ability to implement more flexible approaches to regulation than the EU as a selling point to attract global business. Reeves herself wrote to 17 regulatory bodies in January 2025 urging them to ‘tear down regulatory barriers’ and focus on opportunities to facilitate economic growth. For example, Reeves has implored the Financial Conduct Authority to reduce ‘anti-risk’ regulations and improve competitiveness in financial services sub-sectors, including consumer finance. This is a significant contrast from the EU’s approach, which is more precautionary and is unlikely to result in the reduction of detailed consumer protection rules. If the government does pursue regulatory alignment with the EU in financial services, it would need to consider the impact on regulations, such as affordability assessments and disclosure requirements. Altering these regulations could increase compliance costs for businesses and would likely upset management teams that have spent the last five years adapting to the UK’s Consumer Duty.

The Chancellor also argued that technological advancement is critical to boosting productivity, creating jobs, and positioning the UK as a global leader in emerging industries. As part of this plan, Reeves said the government will support regional growth through fiscal devolution that will empower local leaders, and will also create sector hubs in different cities. This includes establishing Leeds’ Northern Square Mile as a destination for global financial services. To support regional growth the government will create new city-level investment funds and allow regions to retain more of the tax revenues they generate, with the aim of stimulating local investment and reducing reliance on central government.

Reeves commitment to supporting technological innovation in financial services, as well as facilitating growth across the country is likely to provide opportunities to businesses in emerging financial services sub-sectors that harness AI and machine learning. Tech-focused sub-sectors, such as embedded finance, could benefit from these plans, including businesses providing payments and money transfers services, peer-to-peer lending services, and insurtech services. Investors focused on these sectors should monitor the government’s progress in establishing finance or technology sector hubs in various cities across the UK, as well as any funding announcements relating to these sectors.

The Mais Lecture reinforced a consistent economic strategy centred on stability, investment, and reform. While the lecture did not introduce any new policies, it did clarify the government’s long-term economic goals and Reeves’ commitment to ‘securonomics’. However, Reeves will need to use the coming months to share further details on the extent to which she wants key sectors within the government’s industrial strategy, such as the financial services and technology sectors, to be aligned with the EU on regulation. The Chancellor is ‘optimistic’ about the government’s ability to drive investment and growth but will need support from the business community to do so. Investors and businesses should consider potential scenarios where they can support the government to ensure that policy, funding and regulation is geared towards creating the best possible environment for growth in the UK.

If you would like to discuss the Chancellor’s growth strategy and its impact on businesses in more detail, please get in touch with joshua@gkstrategy.com.

What impact will data centres have on the UK’s ability to meet its net zero ambitions?

Data centres have been subject to significant scrutiny in recent years, particularly in relation to their impact on the government’s net zero agenda. In correspondence sent to the cross-party Environmental Audit Committee on 20 February 2026, the Secretary of State for Energy, Security and Net Zero Ed Miliband admitted that energy future demand from data centres, and its interaction with the UK’s net zero ambitions, remains ‘inherently uncertain’.

The government has designated data centres as ‘critical national infrastructure’ given they support nearly all economic activities as well as the day-to-day running of public services. Forecasts undertaken by trade association TechUK suggest that data centres have the potential to contribute an additional £44 billion to the UK economy by 2035, highlighting their strategic importance to the government’s economic growth agenda. The government recognises the important role data centres will play in our economy, evidenced through its commitment to deliver nearly 100 new centres over the next five years. Nonetheless, this has led to environmental groups seeking clarity from the government on how it will deliver this ambition while meeting its environmental obligations.

Under plans to expand the number of data centres, policy challenges have been raised by the wider energy sector and industry bodies, particularly around their use of energy and water. In March 2022, the National Grid Electricity System Operator (ESO) estimated that data centres consume around 2.5% of the UK’s electricity. It is likely that data centres’ electricity consumption will increase significantly over the coming years. Forecasts published by Oxford Economics in December 2025 estimate that data centres’ demand will represent 30.4% of UK’s commercial electricity consumption by 2030.

Alongside rising demand for electricity to power data centres, there is widespread debate about their impact on the water sector. In a report published by the government’s Digital Sustainability Alliance’s (GDSA) in September 2025, global water usage is predicted to increase from 1.1bn cubic metres to 6.6bn cubic metres by 2027. There is limited data available on how much water data centres use given there is currently no obligation for centres to report their water consumption. It is unsurprising therefore, that there are a range of opinions around this issue. While trade associations like TechUK challenge the notion that data centres are ‘inherently water intensive’, non-profit organisations such as Global Action Plan, have criticised the sector’s lack of transparency.

Despite the uncertainty of the sector’s capacity to support the government’s net zero ambitions, there is appetite, particularly from parliamentarians, to better understand the environmental impact of data centres. Last month, the Environmental Audit Committee launched its own inquiry into the risks and opportunities of data centres in the UK, with the committee inviting submissions from interested parties until 6 April 2026. Parliamentarians have also launched a new All-Party Parliamentary Group  to examine the impact of data centres on economic growth and the UK’s net zero ambitions.

As an essential infrastructure for digital storage and the wider economy, there is potential for data centres to help facilitate rapid economic growth for the UK. While data centres are starting to come under scrutiny from parliamentarians regarding their impact on the environment, there is scope for the sector to engage with government which will be very much in listening mode. The government acknowledges the value of data centres but in order for businesses operating in this sector to succeed, the sector will need to challenge the notion that it will constrain the government’s environmental agenda.

If you would like to discuss the impact of data centres and the government’s net zero agenda in more detail, please reach out to Noureen Ahmed at Noureen@gkstrategy.com.

What is FemTech and is it the future of women’s health?

The term ‘FemTech’ refers to women’s digital health services in areas including reproductive health, menopause and maternal care. It covers medical devices, software, therapeutic drugs and consumer apps, amongst other innovative technologies. The concept of FemTech emerged in the 2010s in conjunction with discussions on gender equality in healthcare provision and the development of virtual care delivery models. As interest in the sector has grown, a new market has emerged for investors. The government has also caught wind of the importance that digitalisation plays in the future of women’s healthcare and is looking to promote the development of FemTech and is keen to encourage further investment in the sector.

Following backlash from the dire findings of the Ockenden maternity services review, which identified significant failings in the Shrewsbury and Telford Hospital NHS Trust, the Johnson-led Conservative government published its ‘Women’s Health Strategy for England’ in August 2022. The then government launched a call for evidence to support the development of the strategy, which led to stakeholders submitting requests for government support for the FemTech industry through improved collaboration between the NHS and private sector. The subsequent strategy encouraged the use of digital health technologies to support women’s access to information, healthcare professionals and healthcare options, stating ‘we want to see greater use of digital technologies to empower women by de-mystifying and simplifying the process for companies to scale and launch their products in the UK.’ The then government said that it would support stakeholders by working with National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) to speed up access to innovative health technologies.

The strategy fell by the wayside following successive changes in Conservative Party leadership. However, the Labour government is building on the Conservative’s work on women’s health policy and announced in October 2025 that it was developing a renewed women’s health strategy which would seek to reduce healthcare inequalities and improve women’s access to healthcare professionals. The strategy is being developed to work alongside the 10-Year Health Plan, the government’s long term plan for reforming the NHS in England. It is likely that the renewed strategy, when it is eventually published, will focus on reducing waiting times for women’s healthcare provision and developing new women’s health technologies. The timeline for the renewed strategy is currently unknown; however, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) is likely to encourage stakeholder engagement with the process throughout 2026.

This is an important time for stakeholders working and investing in FemTech. The government is keen to encourage and promote the development of new FemTech solutions to support its wider policy objectives, such as reducing workplace absenteeism and modernising the delivery of health services. The government is looking to innovate and improve women’s healthcare by engaging with the industry and recognises that increased levels of digitalisation is the way forward.

If you would like to discuss the government’s approach to FemTech further, please contact Mariella Turley at mariella@gkstrategy.com