Ranking Keir Starmer and Labour's five missions for the country

Keir Starmer has revealed the five "missions" he would prioritise for the country if he becomes the prime minister at the next election.

The Labour leader set out his goals in a speech today in Manchester, and told the BBC ahead of it that he wanted to provide solutions for the country rather than "sticking plaster politics."

It comes after the current PM - one Rishi Sunak - set out his own five goals last month which included halving inflation this year, ensuring the UK's debt is falling, cutting NHS waiting lists, and passing new laws to stop small boat crossings.

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Starmer's goals covered similar themes: the economy, the NHS, crime, the climate crisis and education and came as Labour cruises 28 points ahead in the polls.

Here are his five pledges - and what indy100 made of them.

1. Secure the highest sustained growth in G7

The economy is in tatters, so Starmer pledging to sort it out sounds good to us. He said that growth was needed to implement all the other goals on his list and that he had met with business leaders to set out his plans.

"Britain needs to create more wealth," he said. "It needs to be competitive.

"It's that simple."

He added that this economic growth needs to be distributed throughout England's regions - not just in London - and that he would "fix our relationship with the EU" to make it happen.

He also said he would obey fiscal rules (Liz Truss are you listening) and that he would work with the private sector to unleash growth there too.

2. Build an NHS fit for future

The NHS? Also in tatters, sadly. There have been multiple reports about crises in the health service lately and it needs urgent intervention.

A generic pledge to make the NHS great does seem vaguer than Sunak's pledge to cut NHS waiting lists, but it is also broader in scope and shows a commitment to fix the service in its totality rather than hone in on a headline-grabbing target that could be spun as good PR for the Tories.

Or - as Starmer would say - it isn't "sticking plaster politics".

3. Make Britain’s streets safe

Starmer echoed New Labour leaders Tony Blair and Gordon Brown in his pledge to cut crime if elected prime minister.

He said he would "reform" the police system, tackle violence against women and make criminals pay for their crimes.

"Tough on crime, tough on the causes before," he said - copying a Blair slogan.

"You've heard that before, but it is right," he said.

It would have been good to hear more and we're sure the direct Blair quote will alienate some on the left.

4. Break down barriers to opportunity at every stage

This vague pledge covered education, childcare and just about every other function of government. It needs a bit of focus, but we're sure we will hear more about what he means in the weeks and months to come.

Still, we can't imagine people chanting this slogan on the streets.

5. Make Britain a clean energy superpower

Starmer said that he wanted to get to net zero by 2030 and make climate change a clear priority. Again, he said he'd set out more detail in the future.

Verdict

We're yet to hear the detail on some of these pledges, but as an early indication of where the Labour party is headed if it wins the election, it seemed pretty strong to us and should do a lot to stop critics who falsely claim Starmer has no real policies.

His pledge to lead a "mission-driven" government rather than either prioritise the public sector or the private sector seemed like a new iteration of Blair's third-way politics - albeit with a more galvanizing and focus-led slogan.

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