Can Sunak pull off his five-point plan?

Rishi Sunak promised to “rebuild trust in politics through action” as he set out his priorities and vision for 2023 in his biggest speech as PM since the inaugural address outside No 10 in October.

Sunak made five key pledges: to halve inflation by the end of the year, to grow the economy, to ensure that Britain’s national debt is falling, to ensure NHS waiting lists fall too, and, finally, to stop small boats crossing the Channel.

“These five promises are the people’s priorities, so they are my priorities too,” he said. But these are not his only ambitions, Sunak added, promising educational reform, and making the more left-field policy announcement of compulsory maths in schools for all children up until the age of 18 – a measure he deems vital to ensure the next generation is equipped for the data-intensive jobs of the future. 

Just how realistic are these aims? 

The PM has reason to feel confident in his inflation timeframe. After all, inflation is thought to have peaked and is already forecast to halve by the end of the year. Yet meeting some of his other targets could prove trickier. 

Following his speech, the PM was asked to clarify what exactly he meant when he vowed to stop small boats crossing from France. Sunak dodged the question, failing to provide any clear target. He stressed that the new deal with the French means 40 per cent more patrols are taking place, and that the deal with the Albanian government will facilitate the return of Albanian nationals crossing the Channel. Yet he would not clarify whether he meant there would be no boats – or fewer boats – by the time of the next general election. 

As for NHS waiting lists, the PM wouldn’t provide exact dates, though he did lay out his aim to eliminate waits lasting 18 months by spring this year, and one-year waiting lists by next year. Elective surgery hubs, he added, are being rolled out across the country to help the government meet this target. Even so, this is an ambitious aim given that a record one in eight people in England are currently waiting for NHS treatment. What’s more, in early 2022, then health secretary Sajid Javid conceded that waiting lists for non-urgent treatment and appointments would only start falling in March 2024. 

Since then, staffing shortages and nurses’ strikes have only added to the problem. Yet when pressed today on why he wouldn’t negotiate on NHS pay rises to bring an end to the strikes, Sunak simply reiterated that nurses’ demands of a 19 per cent pay rise were unaffordable. 

A similar tension arises from his “double maths” policy announcement. While the idea is arguably a sensible one, recruitment of maths teachers could be the real challenge – something Sunak made no mention of. And it comes at a time when teachers are mulling over strike action in protest against poor pay and working conditions. 

Sunak is taking a risk in setting himself targets that could be difficult to meet before the next general election, yet alone by the end of the year. 

And despite the big ambitions, Sunak’s speech, delivered in his usual monotonous manner, received a pretty mixed reception, with critics claiming it was empty of action. Even loyal Tory supporters found his promises waffly on the NHS and felt his speech failed to deal with the A&E crisis or the strikes. 

But will Sir Keir Starmer – who is still riding high in the polls – offer a more convincing vision for transforming the country? We will find out when we makes his very own new year’s speech tomorrow. 

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