In the United Kingdom, Rishi Sunak tries to revive himself in the face of social crisis

Rishi Sunak had an exam for his big school return speech. The British Prime Minister may pronounce it on a day of strike by trains (January 3 to 7), buses (January 4 and 5) or motorway workers (January 3, 4, 6 and 7). He could wait until next week after driving school inspectors, paramedics or even teachers in Scotland walk out. The culmination of the two-day nurses’ strike could wait until next week.

The head of government, after two and a half months, finally spoke on Wednesday, January 4. And he managed the feat of addressing an atmosphere of social anger, but in an unprecedented way for three decades. He liked to speak positively and confidently “A Future of Restoring Faith, Hope and Pride in England”. “We can reverse the gradual acceptance of decline, reject pessimism and fatalism, deny the limits of our aspirations. »

Cut inflation in half

Definitely, Mr. Sunak made five promises to the British, among which he wants the end of his mandate to be decided in two years (the next elections are scheduled for January 2025). He promises to halve inflation by the end of the year; The economy, currently in recession, will return to growth; That he was going ” [s]“to confirm” that the public debt decreases; National Health Service (NHS) waiting lists will be reduced; New laws will be passed to stop migrants crossing the Channel in makeshift boats.

This text is written by Mr. It was Sunak’s first chance to make his mark. His visit to Downing Street on 25 October was made in panic. His predecessor, Lis Truss, lasted only fifty days, marking the beginning of a financial panic after a disastrous budget. He succeeded Boris Johnson in the first half of 2022.

Mr Sunak, 42, spent his first two months in Downing Street calming the storm. “Since I became Prime Minister, we have stabilized the economy and made progress.”, he points out. Still, the political damage is being done: the Conservatives have an average voting intention of 26%, against 48% for Labour.

Is it prudent to try to instill a measure of faith in these situations? Beth Rigby, a Sky News reporter, was blunt about Mr Sunak at the press conference following his speech: “Of course we expected a reassuring tone from you, did she say But in real life you can’t find a train, you can’t get a doctor’s appointment, nurses go to food banks [pour s’en sortir], If we call 999 [les urgences], We don’t know if the ambulance will arrive in time to save his loved ones. (…) Now you are making promises about how you are going to change the country (…). My question is: Why should the general public believe that you are different from your predecessors? »

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