The Prime Minister has set out the milestones for how government will deliver on its national missions through a Plan for Change to drive real improvements for working people.
The milestones for change set out in the plan will track the government’s progress against each of the missions by the end of the parliament, ensuring accountability to the public.
Speaking at Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire, the PM set out how the milestones have been chosen as an ambitious yet honest programme for government to galvanise efforts across government, and how they will require the attention and focus of government to focus relentlessly on what matters most to working people in every corner of the UK in order to bring about a decade of national renewal.
These include a new commitment to fast track planning decisions on at least 150 major economic infrastructure projects, and the biggest housebuilding and infrastructure push in 50 years to turbocharge economic growth across the country.
The PM was clear that mission-led government must be more dynamic and innovative in order to achieve its aims, and that has to be done by working closely in partnership with business, civil society and local government.
This will include a drive to bring more experts into Whitehall to help deliver the government’s Plan for Change, drawing on the expertise of leaders in their field to drive tangible progress on the missions. Leading figures from business, charities and the public sector will be invited to join the government’s mission boards, charged with delivering the Plan for Change in partnership with government.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said
This government was elected to deliver real change for working people – and that is exactly what we are doing.
We have already stabilised the economy, secured an extra £26 billion for the NHS and launched a Border Security Command to tackle illegal migration.
Faced with a dire inheritance, we know that we cannot deliver our Plan for Change alone. Mission-led government means doing things differently, and a decade of national renewal will require the skills and determination of us all.
The new Cabinet Secretary Sir Chris Wormald has also been charged with rewiring how the civil service works to ensure it is equipped with the right structures, tools and ways of working to deliver the Plan for Change.
Key aims of reform across the civil service will include adopting AI and other cutting edge technology to drive efficiency, as well as instilling much greater accountability for senior civil servants across government departments to ensure delivery is kept on track and focused on the missions.
The milestones set out in today’s ‘Plan for Change’ are
-
Raising living standards in every part of the United Kingdom, so working people have more money in their pocket as we aim to deliver the highest sustained growth in the G7, with higher Real Household Disposable Income per person and GDP per capita by the end of the Parliament.
-
Rebuilding Britain with 1.5 million homes in England and fast-tracking planning decisions on at least 150 major economic infrastructure projects.
-
Ending hospital backlogs to meet the NHS standard of 92% of patients in England waiting no longer than 18 weeks for elective treatment.
-
Putting police back on the beat with a named officer for every neighbourhood, and 13,000 additional officers, PCSOs and special constables in neighbourhood roles in England and Wales.
-
Giving children the best start in life, with a record 75% of five-year-olds in England ready to learn when they start school.
-
Securing home-grown energy, protecting billpayers, and putting us on track to at least 95% Clean Power by 2030, while accelerating the UK to net zero.
These missions rest on the foundations of good government necessary to deliver long term change, which the government has been focused on rebuilding – economic stability, secure borders and national security.
The government is doing this by working to improve the resilience of the UK economy, providing long term policy certainty, working with our international partners to prevent harm, working to restore order to the immigration system, reducing net migration from the record high levels seen in recent years by reforming our approach to the labour market, addressing skills shortages here in the UK, and clamping down on employers who exploit the visa system.
