黑洞社区

Rachel Reeves has committed to 拢113bn in funding for transport, housing, energy and skills over the next four years as part of the spending review.

Announcing the government鈥檚 financial plans for the rest of this parliament, the chancellor confirmed 拢39bn for social and affordable housing and 拢15bn for transport improvements across the North and Midlands.

Reeves also committed to providing 拢14.2bn to fund the construction of the Sizewell C nuclear plant and 拢2.5bn for small modular reactors in what she described as 鈥渏ust one step鈥� towards the government鈥檚 ambition for a 鈥渇ull fleet鈥� of the mini reactors.

Transport investments included an additional 拢3.5bn for the TransPennine route upgrade, 拢2.5bn for East West Rail and a commitment to set out plans for Northern Powerhouse Rail.

Other commitments include 拢300m for rail investment in Wales, 拢240m to enhance Leeds station and more money for the Midlands Rail Hub, which is working to improve links between the West Midlands and surrounding regions.

Funding of 拢25.3bn has been provided across the spending review period for the delivery of HS2 from Birmingham Curzon Street to London Euston and to support the 鈥渇ull reset鈥� of the programme under its new chief executive Mark Wild, which will seek to 鈥渁ddress longstanding delivery challenges鈥�.

Transport for London has been handed its largest settlement in more than a decade, with 拢2bn for its capital renewals programme over the next four years. Reeves said the government was committed to working with TfL to explore options for the delivery of the extension of the Dockland Light Railway to Thamesmead.

The school rebuilding programme will get 拢2.4bn a year over the period, with school maintenance investment rising with inflation to around 拢2.3bn by 2029-30.

Alongside the spending review, the Treasury also published the findings of its review into the Green Book, the government鈥檚 investment guidance on value for money. 

The Treasury said it would publish an updated Green Book in early 2026, introducing 鈥減lace-based business cases鈥� which bring together projects 鈥渘eeded to achieve the objectives of a particular place鈥�.

The Department said the reforms would address the overemphasis on benefit-cost ratios (BCRs) in government appraisal, banning the use of arbitrary BCR thresholds as a simple means of determining if a project should be funded.

Reeves said the government wanted to 鈥渕ake sure no region has Treasury guidance wielded against them鈥�.

The chancellor also announced the provision of 拢10bn for 鈥渇inancial investments鈥�, some of which will go through Homes England, to 鈥渃rowd in private investment and unlock hundreds of thousands more homes鈥�.

The commitment is the result of changes made by Reeves last autumn to enable the greater use of financial transactions by government bodies to support investments in public infrastructure.

The announcement came alongside confirmation of 拢39bn for the Affordable Homes Programme (AHP) over 10 years. Reeves said she was 鈥減roud to announce the biggest cash injection in new social and affordable homes in 50 years鈥� and reported that 鈥渢owns and cities, including Blackpool, Preston, Sheffield and Swindon, have already had plans to bring forward bids to build those homes in their communities鈥�.

She also confirmed a 10-year social housing rent settlement from 2026 at CPI+1%, with a consultation on implementing rent convergence set to follow.

Other announcements on the day included 拢2.5bn over the spending review period for low-interest loans to social housing providers to boost development capacity, and equal access for social housing providers to the 黑洞社区 Safety Fund. Registered providers will have access to more than 拢1bn of investment for remediation between 2026/27 and 2029/30 as a result.

But, despite the Treasury agreeing to significant capital investment in new housing, the chancellor has demanded cuts to day-to-day spending from the housing ministry. The resource budget for day-to-day spending at the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) will fall by 1.4% during phase two of the spending review, which runs between 2025/26 and 2028/29.

Documents released by the Treasury revealed that spending through the AHP would reach 拢4bn per year in 2029-30 and rise in line with inflation subsequently.

Other announcements today included funding for research and development, which will rise to 拢22bn a year by the end of the spending review in 2029, while an extra 拢1.2bn has been earmarked for training and apprenticeships. The latter will include 拢625m to train up to 60,000 skilled construction workers as announced in the spring statement.

Meanwhile, prisons will be given 拢7bn to build 14,000 new prison places as part of an ongoing prisons programme that aims to address a chronic shortage of adult male prison places.

Reeves also recommitted to spending 拢13.2bn to fund energy upgrades for homes, despite rumours that the funding might be cut.