Publication

A new Green Book Review 2025: thoughts and recommendations

The UK government has launched a new Green Book Review, following 2020's efforts to address regional investment disparities. As spending priorities evolve, Arup shares insights on how appraisal guidance can better support growth and fairer funding across the country.

Last updated: May 2025

Despite some progress since 2020, core concerns remain: persistent reliance on Benefit-Cost Ratios, difficulty appraising transformational and place-based schemes, limited transparency, and a continued bias toward more productive regions.

This publication from Arup explores why a new review is both timely and necessary. We assess what has (and hasn’t) changed since 2020, and offer targeted, practical recommendations to ensure the Green Book better supports today’s policy priorities – particularly regional growth, economic regeneration, and strategic investment. We also argue that guidance updates alone are not enough: behavioural change, capability-building, and reforms in funding allocation must follow.

We’ve reviewed the four key concerns related to the Green Book and set out our recommended changes to their current approach as well as what other measures could support the government’s objectives over time, classified by short-term, medium-term and long-term recommendations:

Download the full document to explore how the Green Book can evolve to become a more effective, transparent, and inclusive tool for government decision-making.