After a series of bruising setbacks, the Prime Minister can finally point to some positive news: inflation is falling again. The drop, from four per cent to 3.4 per cent, not only beat City expectations but means that over the past 12 months inflation has fallen at the fastest pace since 1978, according to the Resolution Foundation.
The reason for the decline is further cause for celebration. Food inflation has dipped to five per cent, down from 6.5 per cent — the 11th successive monthly fall. And while these figures are unlikely to precipitate an interest rate cut this week, it signals that relief for households could start this summer.
And yet Rishi Sunak will know that the pain — both economic and political — is not over yet. Interest rates higher for longer mean steeper borrowing costs. And an election in the autumn leaves little time for a feel-good factor to generate a shift in the polls. That won’t stop the tea leaves from being closely inspected for a hint of an early rate cut when the Bank makes its next announcement tomorrow.
Voters’ chief concern
While inflation has been a dominant issue over the past three years, it is not the only reason why the Government is struggling. Public services, from the National Health Service to the criminal justice system, are gasping for air.
Indeed, the inability to secure an NHS dentist appointment has jumped to the top of voters’ concerns. Luke Tryl, UK director of More in Common, pointed to a “sense the service has totally collapsed” with people having to pay to be seen privately or travel long distances to secure an appointment.
Last month, the Government announced a £200 million plan to boost NHS dentistry in England, which includes £20,000 bonuses for dentists working in under-served communities. Yet even health minister Dame Andrea Leadsom acknowledged that the modelling which underpins the pledge to deliver 2.5 million additional appointments may not be wholly “reliable”.
The state of public services will go a long way to determining both the nature of the general election campaign and the make-up of the next government.
Kate conspiracies
Palace intrigue is a fairly typical state of affairs. Indeed, the royal family would not be what it is today if the British public were largely apathetic. Moreover, concern for the Princess of Wales is entirely understandable, given the palace’s hapless handling of recent events.
But conspiracy theories can be dangerous, and congeal into a situation in which the information watchdog is now assessing a report which claims that staff at the London Clinic tried to access Kate’s private medical records. It is time for calmer heads to prevail.
