They were delivered in more or less exactly the same location in east London and less than 24 hours apart. What were the key differences in the set-piece new year speeches by Rishi Sunak and Keir Starmer? The big message Rishi Sunak: The prime minister unveiled what he called five “pledges to deliver peace of mind”, albeit ones with occasionally vague deadlines: halving inflation, growing the economy, reducing national debt, cutting NHS waiting lists and passing a law connected to unofficial Channel crossings. The other big promise was mandatory maths study to the age of 18, with an even more opaque timetable attached. Keir Starmer: The Labour leader had similarly few policies to unveil beyond a slightly cheeky new name for existing devolution plans: the “take back control bill”, borrowing a much-used Brexit slogan. More widely, Starmer promised hope and more long-term planning, contrasting this with what he called the government’s “sticking-plaster politics”, a phrase used no fewer than eight times in the speech.
The economy/growth/inflation Sunak: Most of this was contained within the five pledges. The post-speech Q&A seemed to indicate that even a single quarter of growth at the very end of 2023 would meet the target, which feels not hugely ambitious, while inflation is already forecast to more than halve. Beyond that, the PM had some slightly woolly words about the transformative economic power of innovation. Starmer: Even less specific on the economy than Sunak. Starmer’s main – and pre-trailed – pledge was that Labour would not be “getting its big government chequebook out” to boost everyday public spending, even if the party remains committed to significant infrastructure investment, notably on green energy, with a pledge to reach “100% clean power generation by 2030”. NHS Sunak: Shorter waiting times was one of the PM’s five pledges, even though it seems this might only be a target for spring 2024. On tackling the NHS crisis, Sunak had nothing new to offer, only citing existing policies on areas such as extra hospital beds and social care places. Starmer: Also generally a restatement of existing policies, including Labour’s plan to train more NHS staff, and an obligatory reference to the threat to the health service from “sticking-plaster politics”.
Strikes Sunak: He took a slightly more conciliatory tone than recently, saying ministers “hugely value public-sector workers”, and calling for “a reasonable dialogue”. This tone was slightly undermined when, hours later, news emerged of No 10’s plan for an anti-strike law that could lead to some staff being sacked for industrial action. Starmer: The Labour leader had notably less to say about this in his speech. In the subsequent Q&A, he refused to be drawn on any specifics about how a Labour government would solve the disputes, but he did pledge to repeal any anti-strike law. Small boats Sunak: Again, another one of his five pledges, although he only promised to pass a law to try to tackle the Channel crossings, not to actually reduce their number. Asked after the speech if he also promised this, Sunak was notably evasive. Starmer: No mention at all in the speech. When asked about the issue, Starmer reiterated Labour’s somewhat broad plans for the area, for example speeding up asylum decisions.
The personal bit Sunak: The old standby of family. As well as referencing his doctor father and pharmacist mother, Sunak said family “can help us answer the profound questions we face as a country”. In a mini-indication that this is modern Conservatism, he stressed that this was the case “whatever your family looks like”. Starmer: For the few remaining Britons unaware that he comes from a working-class background, the Labour leader recounted his family’s phone being cut off amid the earlier cost of living crisis in his 1970s childhood.