From the economy to NHS waiting lists: the most pressing issues facing the next PM | conservative

Whoever becomes Prime Minister this week – most likely Rishi Sunak or Boris Johnson – will face the most disheartening entry of them all at No. 10 in decades. These are the pressing issues they will need to make decisions about in the coming months.

financial plan

Sunak has stated that repairing the economy is his priority. The Treasury is facing a £40bn black hole and interim chancellor Jeremy Hunt is working on a plan to total the totals by October 31, but that will mean drastic cuts. A new prime minister will have to decide how big the cuts will be – or whether to opt for tax hikes instead.

advantages

One of the most important decisions on this front is whether to raise benefits in line with inflation. Most centrists within the party believe that this is essential and that any attempt to circumvent it would not get through Parliament.

Public sector salaries and strikes

Public sector salaries are similarly problematic when it comes to inflation. Nurses, health workers, ambulance drivers, teachers, train drivers, civil servants, university lecturers and many others are considering going on strike this winter in the face of real pay cuts. The government may need to reconsider its settlements if it is to avoid large-scale disruption to society.

NHS winter crisis and waiting lists

The NHS is in a dire situation heading into winter with the threat of a ‘double’ Covid and flu season, demoralized staff and long waits for surgeries, GP appointments, emergency services and ambulances. A new Prime Minister must make a decision on whether to protect NHS spending from cuts and how to deal with existing pressure on services.

energy

The government provided energy bill support up until April, but now won’t say how much subsidy it will give people after that point. There is also a risk of power outages in winter when gas supplies across Europe remain strained as a result of the Russian war in Ukraine. One of a prime minister’s first actions could be to announce a major energy-saving campaign – a move Liz Truss had previously opposed.

The Northern Ireland Protocol

The protocol issue remains unresolved, although Liz Truss has made strides towards new talks. Although a different tone was struck, eurosceptic Northern Ireland minister Steve Baker warned on Sunday that his group would not hesitate to overthrow the next government if it failed to deliver on its promises to protect free trade within the UK.

Pensions triple lock

The government pledged in the last election to keep the triple freeze – raising pensions by the maximum of inflation, wages or 2.5%. However, if cuts need to be made, a new Prime Minister could consider phasing this out, but that would leave many Tory MPs deeply unhappy depending on older people’s votes.

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defense spending

Defense spending should rise to 3% of GDP by 2030, but scrapping that pledge is an option being considered as the government tries to balance the books. Ben Wallace, the defense secretary, has made it clear that he is committed to politics.

planning

Liz Truss wanted to implement major planning reforms as part of an overhaul of supply-side policies to boost growth. Your government is considering easing planning restrictions for large infrastructures and in investment zones, but also more broadly. This would be very controversial among Tory MPs.

immigration

In the hours leading up to Truss’s departure as prime minister, an immigration dispute raged. She wanted to ease restrictions to boost growth, but the Home Office met resistance. A pro-growth PM is likely to want to ease the curbs to try to stimulate the economy.

Development Assistance

Foreign aid spending is set to return to 0.7% of national income, but a prime minister planning cuts could push back that date. That would infuriate the party’s one-nation wing, many of whom have backed Sunak over Johnson.

Inquiry into Boris Johnson’s conduct

Johnson as prime minister would have a major headache over the upcoming Privileges Committee parliamentary inquiry into whether he misled the House of Commons. Sunak will likely find it problematic too, albeit less so than Johnson, given the attention it’ll draw. The inquest is set to sit for up to four hours a day, three to four days a week for weeks to hear evidence about the Partygate scandal – a spectacle likely to dominate headlines and reignite anger.