The UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said that he will reduce the NHS waiting lists in the next two years and if he fails to do so, the people of the UK can hold him accountable. Rishi Sunak said this during his first speech of 2023 to the UK population. Including this, PM Sunak made five pledges in total which he will be trying to achieve throughout his term as the prime minister of the UK. Currently, the UK is experiencing a serious crisis with the NHS as waiting periods in accidents and emergency departments are dangerously high due to the ongoing nursing strike. Along with this, the UK is also struggling with the slowing economy and rising inflation. All these points were addressed by the prime minister during his first speech of the year, which is expected to provide some hope to the people of the UK.
Rishi Sunak was appointed as the prime minister of the UK when the country was going through one of the toughest times in its history. The country was already facing an energy crisis due to the Russia-Ukraine war which has pushed the pound down in comparison to the US dollar. Due to the ongoing energy crisis, the winters were expected to be the harshest for the people of the UK, which was the situation during Christmas week. Amid all this, the UK also experienced political turmoil as Sunak became the third prime minister of the UK within a year. The war between Russia and Ukraine has put almost every European country in jeopardy as their supplies of oil and gas has been cut short by Russia due to supply chain disruptions. This has pushed the country into inflation and has exponentially increased the cost of living for the people of the UK. Because of all these reasons, the people of the UK have many expectations from Sunak. But his troubles increased when the nurses across the UK working under the NHS went on strike in the 106-year-old history of the Royal College of Nursing. According to the Royal College of Nursing, the nurses in the UK wanted better pay for their services as inflation has made it almost impossible for them to live normal lives.
Thus, the people of the UK had their expectations for the PM's first speech of the year. The first announcement that Sunak made was related to the NHS and attempts of the UK government to resolve issues such as long waiting lines. He said that the UK government will be increasing the NHS funding which will help the agency to increase the number of beds to increase the intake capacities of hospitals under the NHS. He further gave five key pledges which will be achieved during his service as the UK prime minister. This included reducing inflation, growing the economy to have better job opportunities, reducing the national debt, reducing waiting lists in the NHS, and preventing illegal immigration in the country. Rishi Sunak said that the reason behind making these pledges publicly is to allow the people of the UK to hold him and his government accountable if he fails to achieve these pledges.
