Rishi Sunak vows to halve inflation in first major speech of 2023
Rishi Sunak has promised to turn the economy around, cut NHS waiting lists and stop migrant boats crossing the English Channel before the general election expected in 2024.
In a speech setting out five “people’s priorities” to tackle the biggest problems facing Britain, the prime minister said he would halve inflation in the next year, while making the public safer, richer and better cared for.
As a central point, he said “something has to change” in the health service and promised more choice for patients, while focusing on cutting waiting lists.
Mr Sunak also used the speech, the first major address of his premiership, to launch a major new policy: Making maths education compulsory for all up to age 18.
The prime minster, educated at Winchester College, said: “This is personal for me. Every opportunity I’ve had in life began with the education I was so fortunate to receive.”
What are the five promises Rishi Sunak made in his speech?
Jane Dalton covers the key points from the prime minister’s speech: In his first major speech of 2023, setting out his government’s priorities, Mr Sunak said: “First, we will halve inflation this year to ease the cost of living and give people financial security.
“Second, we will grow the economy, creating better paid jobs and opportunity right across the country.
“Third, we will make sure our national debt is falling so that we can secure the future of public services.
“Fourth, NHS waiting lists will fall and people will get the care they need more quickly.
“Fifth, we will pass new laws to stop small boats, making sure that if you come to this country illegally, you are detained and swiftly removed.”
Liam James4 January 2023 15:32
Sunak open for talks with striking nurses
Rishi Sunak said he is open to holding conversations with nurses to avert further strike action, but said union pay demands were unreasonable.
The Royal College of Nursing is asking for a pay rise 5 per cent above RPI inflation – 14 per cent in November – to make up for years of real-term pay cuts.
Taking a question on how his administration would look to solve the dispute and whether bolstering holiday allocation or pension bonuses was on the cards, the prime minister said: “When it comes to dialogue, I repeat what I’ve said before: the door is always open for dialogue.
“We want to have good two-way, open, honest conversations – those have to be rooted in what’s reasonable, what’s affordable, what’s responsible for the country. And I’m keen to have those conversations.
“As I’ve said on pay, those conversations need to be based on what’s affordable. I think a 19 per cent pay rise is not affordable – I don’t think anyone thinks a 19 per cent pay rise is affordable.
Liam James4 January 2023 15:25
Sunak says he’s ‘working night and day’ on Channel crossings
The prime minister was asked what he means by stopping the boats – one of his five pledges.
A reporter asked if that means there will be no small boat crossings across the English Channel by the time of the next election, or that there will just be fewer small boat crossings.
Mr Sunak replied: “Now, when I made a statement in parliament last month about small boats, you know I went out of my way to say this is not an easy problem to fix, and it’s not one that we can fix overnight and it requires lots of different things to be changed.
“Now we’ve made progress on that already,” he said, mentioning deals with France and Albania, adding: “But the most important thing we need to do is pass new legislation, and we want to make sure that that new legislation means that if you come here illegally to our country you will not be able to stay,” he said.
“I am working day and night to deliver that system, and the next step on that journey is to introduce new laws that will allow us to put that system in place, but that is not going to happen overnight. But that is what people will see us working very hard on in the coming weeks and months,” he said.
Liam James4 January 2023 15:12
Sunak says he’s ‘working night and day’ on Channel crossings
The prime minister was asked what he means by stopping the boats – one of his five pledges.
A reporter asked if that means there will be no small boat crossings across the English Channel by the time of the next election, or that there will just be fewer small boat crossings.
Mr Sunak replied: “Now, when I made a statement in parliament last month about small boats, you know I went out of my way to say this is not an easy problem to fix, and it’s not one that we can fix overnight and it requires lots of different things to be changed.
“Now we’ve made progress on that already,” he said, mentioning deals with France and Albania, adding: “But the most important thing we need to do is pass new legislation, and we want to make sure that that new legislation means that if you come here illegally to our country you will not be able to stay,” he said.
“I am working day and night to deliver that system, and the next step on that journey is to introduce new laws that will allow us to put that system in place, but that is not going to happen overnight. But that is what people will see us working very hard on in the coming weeks and months,” he said.
Liam James4 January 2023 15:12
Sunak wants tax cuts as soon as possible
Rishi Sunak said he would like to cut taxes as soon as he feels able.
The prime minister said he had more pressing issues and that he would not pre-empt the spring budget but he wants to let working people keep more of their money.
“I think work provides people with purpose, provides them with dignity and confidence,” he told reporters.
“It’s something to be celebrated and rewarded, which is why as soon as we are able to I want to cut taxes on working people. That’s something that I think the chancellor is also aligned on but right now we’ve got a set of challenges that we’re grappling with, and that’s the priority.”
He said the government was looking a range of things to tackle inactivity.
Liam James4 January 2023 15:05
NHS community hubs will help hospitals, says Sunak
Rishi Sunak said creating NHS “hubs” in the community would help cut waiting lists and free up hospitals to focus on urgent care.
The prime minister, asked why he was focusing on cutting waiting lists when urgent care was encountering issues, said that “we need to do both”.
Mr Sunak said: “The reason we’ve got a huge waiting list now is because we’re having to catch-up with that.
“Actually, one of our initiatives to stop that happening again is to create what are called elective surgical hubs and community diagnostic centres where people can get all the scans and the tests they need and indeed the routine electives, like hip replacement and cataracts, away from the acute part of the hospital.”
Liam James4 January 2023 15:01
Rishi Sunak vows to create ‘culture where women are safe in their communities’
It was not one of the prime minister’s five pledges but he did speak at length on making Britain safer, particularly for women.
Rishi Sunak vows to create ‘culture where women are safe in their communities’
Liam James4 January 2023 14:57
Timeframe for targets would be irresponsible, says Sunak
Taking questions from reporters, the prime minister said he intentionally decided not to set out specific timeframes for all of his five pledges today.
His pledges were: “Halve inflation, grow the economy, reduce debt, cut waiting lists, and stop the boats.”
Responding to a question from the BBC, he said: “I’ve deliberately not put a specific month on each of them because I don’t think that’s responsible or the right thing to do with with goals that are so complicated, where many of the forces that will impact our ability to hit them are out of my control as well.
“We’ve seen that over the past year or two. But what I am being very clear about is what I am prioritizing, what I am keen to deliver for the country in terms that I think are easy to understand and unambiguous.
“I fully expect the country to hold me and the government to account for how much effort we’re putting in to working on those priorities, which are their priorities.”
Liam James4 January 2023 14:52
Rishi Sunak says A&E is NHS’s pressure point
The prime minister said the “most acute” pressure in the NHS is on A&E.
Asked by the BBC at his press conference in east London how soon things will improve in the NHS this winter, Mr Sunak said: “As I acknowledged right at the beginning of the speech, I think that’s the thing that people are most worried about.”
He referenced his five priorities, and said “making sure that we reduce waiting times in the NHS was one of them”, adding “something I have been working on a lot since I was PM, and that’s why I want the country to hold me account for delivering it”.
He outlined “lots of things we are doing”, saying the “most acute pressure” this winter is in A&E, saying: “What I want the country to know is there are a range of things we’re doing that will make a difference.
“The biggest problem that we have is there are at the moment around 13,000 in hospital beds who should ideally be back in their communities or in social care. And that’s what’s making our hospitals full.”
He outlined funding for early discharge, virtual wards, and other measures, adding on waiting times: “We’ve already eliminated those waiting two years, and by next spring I think we will have eliminated those waiting a year.”
Liam James4 January 2023 14:50
Sunak says ‘people’s priorities’ may be matter for next parliament
Rishi Sunak said he accepted the vision he set out may not be achieved in this parliament.
The prime minister said: “As well as peace of mind today, this afternoon I’ve also set out a vision for a better future for our children and grandchildren. Now we’re not going to get there overnight, or even in this parliament. But this is the journey we are on.
“And despite all the challenges we face, all the anxieties that people feel, I know we can get there. Others may talk about change, I will deliver it. I won’t offer you false hope or quick fixes, but meaningful lasting change.
“I want people to feel something that they do not always feel today – a belief that public services work for them, and knowledge that if you work hard in the good times, the state will be there for you during the bad.”
Liam James4 January 2023 14:47
Kaynak: briturkish.com