Reflections on the updated Green Book: Shifting towards balanced judgement in appraisal

The UK Government’s Green Book provides the framework for assessing the value for money of public spending. In this episode of Insight for Impact, SQW experts Luke Delahunty, Rebecca Pates and Stuart Wells join podcast host Joe Duggett to discuss the 2026 update to the guidance and what it means for those developing, reviewing and appraising business cases.

The discussion begins by setting out the purpose of the Green Book as a consistent, evidence-based framework for appraising policies, programmes and projects. The panel then explores the key themes emerging from the 2026 update. These include a shift away from reliance on single metrics such as benefit-cost ratios (BCRs), towards a more rounded and balanced judgement that better captures non-monetised impacts, alongside a stronger emphasis on explicitly assessing risk and uncertainty.  The episode also reflects on wider changes, including improved accessibility of the guidance, greater recognition of place-based effects, and the importance of strengthening capacity and capability in appraisal practice at local and national levels.

Looking ahead, the panel considers what this means in practice. A central theme is the need for cultural as well as technical change – encouraging more transparent, coherent and evidence-led business cases, and better integration between appraisal, monitoring and evaluation to support more effective public investment decisions.

You can also listen and subscribe to Insight for Impact on the most popular podcast platforms: