TV Debate: Rishi Sunak Admits Failure To Deliver His 5 Pledges

Rishi Sunak admitted he had failed to deliver some of his key pledges to the nation as both him and Labour leader Keir Starmer faced a tough interrogation in the Sky News leaders debate.

Sunak and Starmer were interviewed by Sky's Political Editor Beth Rigby on Wednesday evening in Grimsby, before taking questions from a live audience. It was the second televised event involving the pair, taking place with three weeks to go until the 4 July General Election.

Soon after becoming prime minister in late 2022, Sunak set five pledges for his government to achieve. They were to halve inflation, grow the economy, get debt falling, cut NHS waiting lists and stop small boat crossings.

Sunak acknowledged in his interview with Rigby that NHS waiting lists had risen since he entered office around 18 months ago.

He was challenged and heckled by some members of the audience when he said that industrial action in the health service, including strikes by junior doctors, had put more pressure on waiting lists.

The PM, who opinion polls suggest is very likely to lose next month's election, was also pressed on the government's failure to "stop" small boats arriving in the UK, and acknowledged that crossings are up this year compared with the same period in 2023.

Sunak tried to counter this point by claiming small boat arrivals had fallen during his time as leader. 

“You’ve picked one particular period. If you look at the sum total of time, I’ve been Prime Minister, the numbers are down," he said in response to Rigby. "These things are cyclical because what you’ve seen is one new country, Vietnam, accounting for most of the new arrivals."

Sunak was also pressed by a voter who said his daughter had found it more difficult to get on the housing