The prime minister has taken aim at the civil service, saying “too many people in Whitehall are comfortable in the tepid bath of managed decline” during a speech outlining his new 'Plan for Change'.
Starmer said: “I don't think there's a swamp to be drained here,” referencing a phrase used by US politicians.
“But,” Starmer said, “I do think that too many people in Whitehall are comfortable in the tepid bath of managed decline. Have forgotten, to paraphrase JFK, that you choose change not because it's easy, but because it's hard."
“I totally get that when trust in politics is so low, we must be careful about the promises we make, but across Whitehall and Westminster that's been internalised as ‘don't say anything, don't try anything too ambitious, set targets that will happen anyway'," he added.
Starmer also criticised public sector productivity. The PM said productivity in the public sector has dropped by 2.6% compared to a year ago, and is 8.5% lower than just before the Covid-19 pandemic. He says this “wouldn’t be accepted in any other sector or walk of life” and that he will not subsidise lower productivity "with ever-rising taxes on the British people”.
Starmer used the speech, at Buckinghamshire's Pinewood Studios, to set out six milestones for this Parliament, which will be used to judge progress against the government's five missions.
The six milestones 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.