Yesterday saw my operation was brought forward from 23rd July to this morning – June 12th. I heard my news as I heard that the NHS was to receive £39bn – so that good news like mine can happen a little more often. Of course my news happened because somebody dropped off the waiting list, I am sad for that person and their relatives. But yesterday was also a day to find people are living longer than ever before.
It was great to hear a Chancellor deciding to invest for the future, so that the businesses that will benefit will be paying for healthcare in thirty years time and so the pension system which we are all part of, has the means to pay income to my grand children.
The two words that stick in my mind from Reeves’ speech are “choice” and “investment”
You will be reading the headlines in the papers and on the newsfeeds from BBC , FT and others. But here is a snippet I discovered from social media and the source of which I have stupidly lost…
Delivering the UK Spending Review today, the chancellor of the exchequer, Rachel Reeves, has announced that the British Business Bank’s financial capacity will be increased to £25.6bn.
This will enable a two-thirds increase in investments to around £3.5bn each year. This investment, according to the Bank, is expected to crowd in “tens of billions of pounds” of private capital and will support the most innovative UK businesses to access the capital they need to scale in the UK.
The British Business Bank is the largest investor in UK venture and venture growth capital funds. It highlighted that its equity programmes have supported more than half of the UK’s current unicorns — 22 UK unicorns have been supported by the Bank’s equity programmes, representing 56% of all current UK unicorns.
Louis Taylor, chief executive officer of British Business Bank, said:
“As the public financial institution with responsibility for supporting the growth of smaller businesses across the UK, the British Business Bank will play a critical role in delivering the UK’s upcoming modern Industrial Strategy.
“We welcome today’s announcement by the government, which is a strong endorsement of the British Business Bank’s 10-year track record, market access and capabilities, including our position as the largest investor in UK venture and venture growth capital funds and the most active late-stage investor in UK life sciences and deeptech.”
Taylor added that to deliver the government’s growth mission, it is “critical” that the UK’s “most promising entrepreneurs can access the finance they need to grow their businesses, no matter what their background or where they are located”.
The words were emboldened by me, they remind me that pensions are looking for ways to increase the speed at which we improve British productivity, but while half my mind is on the future for pensions, the other half is on the capacity of the NHS to get out of the mess my body has found itself of late.
The money to invest while paying the NHS more will of course come in part from Government borrowing but it will also come from greater productivity from organisations like the NHS
My good fortune came about because the systems at a London Hospital learned that my recovery could be speeded up by 6 weeks. This mail was received within minutes of a telephone conversation, here is improved productivity in action.
Dear HENRY TAPPER,
This is to inform you that your appointment has been rescheduled as shown below:
Clinic: URODYNAMICS – Urology
Time and date: 09:00 BST Thursday 12 June 2025
Location: Outpatients Department, Ground Floor
University College Hospital at Westmoreland Street,
16-18 Westmoreland Street
London W1G 8PH! This replaces your appointment at 09:45 on 23/07/25.
Many Thanks
Christine Hammond
Booking and Incoming Coordinator
16-18 Westmoreland Street
London W1G 8PH
Every lost space in the queue for important work like I am having in a few hours costs the NHS money. Each appointment which is fulfilled because of work like this saves us money and gives us an opportunity to put money in the British Business Bank to invest in the kind of systems that make the NHS more efficient.
Which is why , just before 6 am, I am preparing myself to go out and get better. Why I hope that readers will understand how I am elated that my tax-money is paying to improve the service from the NHS, is invested in stocks that my pension fund can buy and ensure that the quality of service is not just maintained but improved for me, my children and my grandchildren.
I have also published this morning , news supplied by Stuart McDonald that as a country we are living longer than ever before. We need longer lasting pensions and a continuing improvement from our NHS. We need investment banks and we need people like Christine Hammond operating systems that maximise productivity.
Which is why I am pleased with my Chancellor and will say a small, meaningful prayer to my (our) God, for Rachel Reeves Spending Review. Thanks too for the FT reporting exactly what I am experiencing – the use of AI to deliver to patients.
All the best for today, Henry