Governments' Financial Analysis Evaluation by UK: Insight from ACE Group
The UK government has announced substantial new capital allocations across transport, energy, water, and digital infrastructure, as part of a comprehensive plan to level up the country. These investments, totalling billions, have been welcomed by various stakeholders, including the ACE Group, who advocate for both new projects and the maintenance of existing infrastructure.
In the 2025 Spending Review, the ACE Group, a leading industry body, emphasized the necessity for long-term, clear investment pipelines to address the backlog and maintenance needs across UK infrastructure, particularly in areas like rail and healthcare. Marie-Claude Hemming, ACE's policy director, stressed the importance of long-term clarity and steady investment pipelines to stabilize the sector and give confidence to invest in innovation, recruit skilled labor, and retain talent.
While the search results do not provide explicit details on the specific maintenance needs for Victorian-era rail infrastructure and NHS infrastructure as highlighted by the ACE Group, several insights can be drawn around infrastructure investment context and ACE Group’s perspectives.
The UK government published a 10-Year Infrastructure Strategy and an interactive infrastructure database covering over 700 projects worth more than £500bn. This strategy acknowledges issues such as major cost overruns, projects badly off track, and a huge backlog of public infrastructure not being adequately maintained. This points to systemic maintenance challenges in public infrastructure including rail and healthcare.
On rail, funding allocations for consolidated rail infrastructure and safety improvements totalling billions for FY26 indicate ongoing investment, although specific details for Victorian-era infrastructure needs are not outlined in the sources. Regarding healthcare infrastructure, no direct references were found highlighting the NHS infrastructure’s specific maintenance needs by the ACE Group in the Spending Review documents obtained.
The ACE Group has expressed support for the capital commitments outlined in the 2025 Spending Review, including the government's transformational package of £39bn to the affordable homes programme for 10 years from 2026-2036. Kate Jennings, Chief Executive of ACE Group, emphasized the importance of infrastructure for economic growth.
Moreover, the government's emphasis on regional growth includes an increase in new metro and rail projects for the North and the Midlands. Legal & General, a financial services company, suggests that the time is right to invest in regional cities. The report warns that a lack of direction from the Government is a barrier to levelling up the country.
The Comprehensive Spending Review is expected this autumn, and the government is urged to invest in essential maintenance work to prevent the deterioration of existing UK infrastructure. The focus is on delivery that is smarter, more productive, and fit for the future, with the Construction Playbook and procurement reform to reward long-term value.
The ABI has released a new Investment Delivery Report, and the government's capital investment has the potential to transform communities and drive long-term economic resilience. Renewable energy is the number one real asset investment, according to new research among financial advisers and wealth managers.
In conclusion, the ACE Group underscores the necessity for long-term, clear investment pipelines to address backlog and maintenance across UK infrastructure, including rail and NHS. However, the search results do not contain detailed or specific maintenance needs for Victorian-era rail infrastructure or NHS infrastructure as per the 2025 Spending Review. Further detailed reports directly from ACE Group or the Spending Review documents may be required for precise specifics.
- The ACE Group, in their Investment Delivery Report, emphasizes the importance of long-term, clear investment pipelines, specifically pointing out the need for addressing backlog and maintenance across UK infrastructure, such as rail and healthcare.
- In the 2025 Spending Review, while there are capital commitments towards maintaining rail infrastructure, including safety improvements and affordable homes program, there is a lack of specific details on the maintenance needs for Victorian-era rail infrastructure and NHS infrastructure.
