Our Express ten pledges form a powerful programme to build a stronger, fairer society

The new Prime Minister’s first address to the nation, delivered from a lectern in Downing Street, was typical of the man: earnest, workmanlike and practical.

There was no attempt to indulge in overheated Churchillian rhetoric, no resort to Utopian visions of the future.

Instead he focused on his Government’s commitment to diligence and delivery. What lies head for the Labour Cabinet, he said, is “patient, determined work.”

Sir Keir Starmer's regime emphasises perspiration rather than inspiration.

The renowned American politician Mario Cuomo, who served as the Democratic Governor of New York state for most of the 1980s, once famously declared that politicians tend to “campaign in poetry and govern in prose.” That is hardly true of Starmer. Whether behind his desk or on the platform, stolid pragmatism seems to be his only mode of operation.

But such an approach suits the mood of the country. The electorate are tired of political posturing and grandiose gestures.

They wish to see real improvements in their lives, especially through better-run, less profligate public services and an officialdom that is more interested in the needs of the country than in imposing the latest edicts of the fashionable progressive orthodoxy.

The public’s agenda is not a complicated one but our political class has miserably failed to concentrate on this core mission, preferring to promote wokery and internal party feuds.

Yet that could change if our rulers adopted the Express’s 10 point plan to revitalise Britain, as set out today. Ever since its foundation in 1900 by the publisher and entrepreneur Sir Arthur Pearson, the Daily Express has been a formidable campaigning paper, never more so than over Brexit.

We played a heroic leading role in the fight for British independence from Brussels rule because we believed that our greatness could be best secured by taking charge of our own destiny. We saved triple lock for the nation’s pensioners and made sure the nation’s cystic fibrosis sufferers got access to life-saving drugs.

This manifesto is in the same great crusading, patriotic tradition. In its common sense pragmatism, it sets out a map for a brighter future and presents a compelling blueprint for national renewal.

Britain’s problems are obvious – and so are the solutions. Most voters want measures like tougher border controls, an end to the permanent crises in the NHS and the social care sector, the protection of the state pension, greater dynamism in the economy, the maintenance of women’s rights, safer streets and enhanced support for our armed forces.

All these goals are achievable with determination and political will. The social care sector, for instance, could be put on a stable footing if Labour and the Conservatives agreed to take the issue out of the political realm and instead come to a consensus that would secure long-term funding without the unjust lottery of some homeowners being forced to sell their homes to pay for care.

There could be similar co-operation on NHS reform if both parties agreed to abandon partisanship and support necessary change.
In the same vein, the economy would receive a huge boost if the Government slashed corporation tax down again to 19 per cent from its current rate of 25 per cent.

It is no wonder that the economy is sluggish, given that the tax burden is at its highest level since the 1940s. Nor has the experiment in weakening border controls over the last two decades proved a success.

Competition from cheap foreign labour has thrown millions of Britons on the economic scrapheap, and undermined the duty on employers to promote training. Last year, no fewer than 1.4 million foreign arrivals were allowed to settle in Britain, an influx that has put an intolerable strain on the civic infrastructure, especially the welfare system.

Just as worrying has been the failure by successive governments to tackle illegal migrant crossings of the English channel. Since 2018, despite huge British subsidies to France, 130,000 migrants have made the dangerous journey and 240 of them have died in the process, including several children. Far tougher action is needed to stop the boats.

Despite its huge majority, Labour did not command much enthusiasm on the campaign trail, as reflected in their share of the national vote share of just 33.8 per cent, even lower than Jeremy Corbyn’s vote in 2017. Turnout was down to its lowest level in 20 years. But this manifesto could rally public support behind the crucial task of reinvigorating Britain.

Not only would this plan provide the Government with a real clarity of purpose but it would also bring the country together after six weeks of divisive campaigning.

These ten pledges – which are neither partisan nor doctrinaire - form a powerful programme for Government to build a stronger, fairer society.

Just as importantly, they could also form the basis of a manifesto for the next Tory leader. Indeed, this is precisely the kind of package that the Conservatives should have pushed through in office over the last 14 years, with its focus on strong defences, freedom for enterprise, protection of our borders and the natural environment and more efficient publish services.

If the Tories hade followed that agenda, they would not be in their current dire mess, having lost two thirds of their MPs. But the Express offers a realistic escape route from the quagmire of record-breaking unpopularity.

Buttressed by these proposals the Conservatives can begin to move from the dark valley of humiliating defeat into the sunlit uplands of political recovery, especially because Labour is likely to shy away from bold action on immigration, business taxes, and the transgender ideology, while Starmer’s government would far rather renegotiate a closer relationship with the EU than embrace all the advantages of Brexit.

In Labour’s hesitations lies the Tories’ opportunity. The wholesale adoption of this manifesto would enable the new Conservative leader to set out a clear strategy, seize the centre ground, unite the party and banish the fractious introspection that has plagued the party for too long. In place of navel-gazing, the Tories could become outward-looking once more.

Backing the 10 proposals would be a far more effective way of regaining public support than endless new rounds of infighting and rows about ideological purity.

The challenges facing Britain are enormous, but, as Sir Keir said on the steps of Downing Street on Friday, we have overcome worse in the past through our national gifts of fortitude, resilience and innovation.

Those are the same qualities that could shine through the implementation of the Express’s manifesto. It is a time for sober minds, unity and working together for a better Britain.