Sunak is set for a turbulent start to the year after failing in 2023

In his New Year address last year, the then newly appointed Prime Minister said United kingdom, Rishi Sunakidentified five priorities for 2023: Reducing Economic inflation Halfway, motivating Economic growthreduce the religion Public, shorten queues in Public health care And put an end to irregular access immigrants Across the English Channel. “As prime minister, I have to say what my goals are, to be directly accountable if I don’t achieve them,” he said in early January. A year later, the British “Prime Minister” only achieved his first priority, which was to delve into Britain’s internal crisis Conservative Party And raising doubts about his leadership at the beginning of a year that is expected to be turbulent.

Despite failing to achieve almost all of its goals, the government has highlighted the progress it has made so far on economic matters. Sunak blew his chest out in mid-November after inflation reached 4.6% in October, a very far cry from 10.7% at the end of 2022, and that prime minister Because “difficult decisions” have been made so far Financial discipline. However, some economists take credit from the executive branch, because they maintain that reducing inflation is consistent with the mission Bank of England The policies promoted by the Ministry of Finance contributed little to achieving this goal.

Economy and health

The other two economic goals remain a headache for the Prime Minister. the Economy A contraction of 0.1% in the third quarter of 2023 Last check From the National Statistics Office, while growth in the previous two quarters did not exceed 0.3%. In the case of public debt, it reached 97.8% gross domestic product In October 2023, more than two points higher than the ratio recorded in October of last year. The government acknowledges that Economic growth Far from what was expected, but he insists that the declines Taxes The recently announced project will help boost the economy beyond expectations in 2024.

Beyond the economic plans, Sunak's main problem lies in his two other goals. NHS waiting lists fell slightly in November after reaching a record high of more than 7.77 million people for non-urgent consultations the previous month. But despite this decline, the data is still well above pre-crisis levels pandemic, when nearly 4.6 million people were on the waiting list to start their treatment. The government attributes the delay to repeated delays Strikes It was called for by health professionals, especially resident doctors, who have not yet reached an agreement for an increase wages.

Irregular migration

The inability to reduce waiting lists affects the credibility of the executive, but the biggest source of contention lies in the problems of ending waiting lists. Irregular migration. Sunak has so far managed to reduce the number of arrivals across the English Channel by about 30% compared to the previous year, when a record number of more than 45,000 people was recorded. But both Steel wing Members of his party and more extreme voters consider the Prime Minister's efforts insufficient and demand that he take stronger measures to implement the plan to deport asylum seekers as quickly as possible. seek refuge To Rwanda.

Sunak realizes he will need to make progress on this to have any chance of a fight General electionsscheduled to be held in the spring or fall of 2024. Parliament approved a draft protection law Deportations The African country will be key to maintaining its leadership at the helm of the Conservative Party, while on the economic front all eyes will be on the new tax cuts announced by the Minister of Finance, Jeremy HuntHe is expected to announce this in his spring speech scheduled for next March 6. Rumors about the possibility of a snap election before the summer are gaining strength, and Sunak no longer has time to redirect a course that is currently causing him more problems than the results.