Following 12 months of turmoil in Downing Street, Rishi Sunak kicked off 2023 by vowing to “deliver peace of mind” to UK voters by fulfilling five key pledges.
In his first major speech of the year, the prime minister said his goals were to cut inflation, boost the economy, stop boats carrying migrants from crossing the Channel, and slash debt and NHS waiting lists.
The pledges come at a critical time for the Conservative Party, which continues to trail Labour in the polls amid mounting pressure to tackle nationwide strikes, the cost-of-living, and the NHS staffing and safety crises.
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Sunak also announced plans to improve numeracy levels by extending mandatory Maths education to all pupils in England up to the age of 18.
But Keir Starmer argued that the PM’s pledges didn’t add up and criticised the Tory government’s “sticking plastic politics”. Setting out his own vision for 2023, the Labour leader promised to introduce a “take back control” bill designed to redistribute power from Westminster to communities across the UK.
To find out how closely you’ve been paying attention to the latest developments in the news and other global events, put your knowledge to the test with our Quiz of The Week.
Need a reminder of some of the other headlines over the past seven days?
- Israel’s new national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir visited the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem, triggering widespread condemnation
- Tributes to football legend Pelé poured in following his death at the age of 82
- New research found that Tuesday to Thursday has become the typical working week in London offices
- A new weight-loss medication was tipped to become “the best-selling drug of all time”.
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