Rishi Sunak and his team prepare for their speech at the Conservative Party conference Photo: Stefan Rousseau/PA
Rishi Sunak will vow to end 30 -those years of the status quo in politics as he tries to position himself as a candidate for the next general election.
In his first Conservative Party conference speech as leader, Mr Sunak will try to introduce Sir Keir Starmer, the Labor leader, as a candidate of continuity for voters.
The Prime Minister is set to announce that the second section of HS2, from Birmingham to Manchester, will be scrapped, ending weeks of speculation as he scraps the Tories' flagship construction project.
But in turn he will promise billions of pounds on other transport schemes, arguing that he is a political leader who is honest with the public and is ready to make important decisions ahead of elections scheduled for autumn 2024.
Other announcements will be signaled. Steps being considered in recent weeks include the abolition of A-levels, further action to tackle poor quality university degrees and new anti-smoking measures.
Rishi Sunak looks around the exhibitors' Hall at the Tory conference on Tuesday. Photo: Carl Court/AFP via Getty Images
Speaking in Manchester on Wednesday, Mr Sunak will say: «There is an undeniable feeling that politics simply isn't working the way it should.» He will say there is «a feeling that Westminster is a broken system. and the same goes for Holyrood, Cardiff Bay and Stormont.”
He will add: “It’s not anger, it’s exhaustion.” with politics. In particular, politicians say something, and then nothing changes.
“And you know what, people are right. Politics don't work the way they should.
“We have had a political system for 30 years that rewards easy solutions rather than good ones. Thirty years of vested interests stand in the way of change.”
He adds: “Our political system is too focused on short-term gains rather than long-term success.”
“Politicians have spent more time on campaign for change than to implement it. Our mission is to fundamentally change our country.”
This approach reflects the belief among conservative election strategists that voters are frustrated with politicians of all stripes and are demanding fundamental change.
The speech — one of Sunak's most politically significant in his year as No 10 — could be his last at the Tory conference before the next election if it is held before the autumn.
A Conservative source said that the film will show how Mr Sunak «wants to change the way our political system works and end 30 years of the political status quo.»
The reference to 30 years is a hint. Margaret Thatcher, whose reformist premiership is still regarded by conservatives as a model. She was removed from office in 1990, 33 years ago.
It is also a criticism not only of the New Labor years of Blair-Brown, but also of the four Conservative prime ministers since then — David Cameron, Theresa May, Boris Johnson and Liz Truss.
The speech is the result of months of strategizing by Mr Sunak and his team on how to overturn Labour's huge lead in the polls and give the Tories a fighting chance of re-election.
After a year dedicated to calming markets and putting out fires in economy, the NHS and illegal migration he inherited, Mr Sunak has decided to change gears and take big political steps.
His recent decision to delay some flagship steps 'net zero' measures, including a ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars and the introduction of a new driver support plan for motorists, will be followed by another 'longer-term' decision — scrapping the second stage of HS2 due to rising costs.
The Prime Minister will justify his decision as well as his net zero move by saying he is being honest about an unrealistic and costly policy.
Promising HS2 trains could run from Birmingham to Manchester on existing lines — at old speeds but without changing trains — could help limit the backlash, while also providing a promise that the line would reach London Euston, not just Old Oak Common on on the outskirts of the capital.
Official confirmation of the move is set to escalate confrontation with some HS2 supporters in his party, including George Osborne, the former chancellor who backed the project.
But strategists The Tories believe that by adopting attractive policies, solutions that Mr Sunak believes in, based on themes of long-termism and integrity, voters will see him as a politician determined to make a difference.
However, no significant tax cuts will be announced next year. speech, despite persistent calls from many Conservatives for such a move.
With the target of halving inflation this year still to be achieved and soaring interest payments on the debt leaving the Treasury with little fiscal headroom, it was decided that now is not the time.
Mr Sunak will also talk about his upbringing, including how his grandparents moved to Britain and what his rise to 10th place says about the success of multiculturalism.
This will be the second time he has raised the issue after Suella Braverman, the Home Secretary, said in a tough speech on immigration last week that multiculturalism had “failed.”
p>At the core of this approach is the belief that to win the next election, which would extend the Tories' current 13-year hold on power for another five years, Mr Sunak must deliver change.
So the prime minister will use his address to try to portray Sir Keir, the Labor leader turned MP after a decades-long legal career, as a viable candidate for the status quo.
Mr Sunak will say: “The Labor Party has made it its mission to do and say as little as possible and hope no one notices.”
“They want to take people's votes for granted and continue to do politics, the same old way. This is a bet on people's apathy.
“This does not speak of any higher purpose or bright future. It's about power for power's sake. In short, that's everything that's wrong with our politics.»
The Conservative Party has hovered 15-20 percentage points behind Labor in the polls for much of this year, although there has been a recent tightening in some polls since then. , as claims of a null result gave him hope.
But Tory election strategists believe Sir Keir made a political miscalculation by not announcing bolder reforms while leader. They hope they can now take on the mantle of change.
The Labor leader will have the chance to counter the reports and announce his own policy moves at his party's conference in Liverpool next weekend — a break with tradition as the Tory Conference usually takes the last place in the diary.
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