British PM Rishi Sunak with 'stop the boats' on the screen behind him during a Q&A session at Teesside University in Darlington
British PM Rishi Sunak with 'stop the boats' on the screen behind him during a Q&A session at Teesside University in Darlington
British PM Rishi Sunak with 'stop the boats' on the screen behind him during a Q&A session at Teesside University in Darlington
British PM Rishi Sunak with 'stop the boats' on the screen behind him during a Q&A session at Teesside University in Darlington

'Stop the boats' slogan a distraction at UK PM Rishi Sunak's health plan launch


Gillian Duncan
  • English
  • Arabic

It was a speech solely dedicated to how the Conservatives intended to fix the UK’s ailing National Health Service.

But for the vast majority of Conservative leader Rishi Sunak’s monologue on Monday, much of the talk on Twitter was about a slogan in the background to "stop the boats".

The line, one element of the Tory party’s five-point plan to turn the country around, was part of a list on a screen behind the Prime Minister.

The five-point plan promises to:

But for the duration of the speech, "stop the boats" was the only line that could be seen — leading to confusion, and criticism, of the Prime Minister's priorities among some, who tagged their posts with hashtag: #stoptheboats.

“Weird to see the PM making a speech to NHS staff, about the state of the NHS, with 'Stop the boats' on the screen behind him,” tweeted one journalist.

The public was also confused in equal measure.

“Sunak doing this whole speech on the NHS with only '5 Stop the Boats' visible behind him is grimly amusing,” wrote another, with the accompanying hashtag, #ToryBrokenBritain.”

Another wrote: “Why is @RishiSunak in a clinical environment being allowed to have ‘stop the boats’ in huge letters behind him? Which managers signed that off?”

The UK’s immigration system is currently in crisis, with a backlog of more than 100,000 asylum claims waiting to be decided as of December.

A record number of people — 45,756 — crossed the channel in small boats in 2022. That was 60 per cent up on the 28,526 recorded for the whole of 2021.

Mr Sunak has promised to take tough action to “stop the boats”.

It includes new legislation to speed up the deportation of foreign criminals who have claimed protection under the country’s modern slavery laws.

Under the changes, which come into force on Monday, the same day as his speech, the government will be able to withhold protections from anyone sentenced to 12 months or more, or convicted of serious offences such as murder or terrorism, as part of a wider crackdown on illegal migrants.

What he was really there to talk about

Mr Sunak was in County Durham to promise to deliver "the largest and fastest-ever improvement in emergency waiting times in the NHS's history".

During his speech, the Prime Minister pledged to fix ambulance delays and the crisis in A&E, though critics have said serious questions remain about the number of staff needed to improve NHS care.

As part of a new plan for improving urgent and emergency care, the government has set goals that by March 2024:

  • 76 per cent of A&E patients will be dealt within four hours. Currently, fewer than 70 per cent are and the official target is 95 per cent.
  • An average response time of 30 minutes for category-two emergency calls such as heart attacks and strokes over the course of 2023/24. In December, patients waited over 90 minutes. The official target is 18 minutes.

Mr Sunak said his plan meant there would be more beds, more ambulances, more staff and better social care and "if we can deliver on it, I think we will see — in fact I know we will see — the largest and fastest-ever improvement in emergency waiting times in the NHS's history".

He added: "That is the ambition of our plan that we've set out today ... I feel really confident we can deliver it."

Mr Sunak said that with the "hard work" and the "ingenuity" of NHS staff "we're going to fix this problem".

He added: "We're going to improve things for patients and make an enormous difference to people up and down the country."

MWTC

Tickets start from Dh100 for adults and are now on sale at www.ticketmaster.ae and Virgin Megastores across the UAE. Three-day and travel packages are also available at 20 per cent discount.

While you're here

GOLF’S RAHMBO

- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)

The specs
  • Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
  • Power: 640hp
  • Torque: 760nm
  • On sale: 2026
  • Price: Not announced yet
Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
GOODBYE%20JULIA
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EMohamed%20Kordofani%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3ESiran%20Riak%2C%20Eiman%20Yousif%2C%20Nazar%20Goma%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%205%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Specs

Engine: Dual-motor all-wheel-drive electric

Range: Up to 610km

Power: 905hp

Torque: 985Nm

Price: From Dh439,000

Available: Now

Overall standings

1. Christopher Froome (GBR/Sky) 68hr 18min 36sec,

2. Fabio Aru (ITA/AST) at 0:18.

3. Romain Bardet (FRA/ALM) 0:23.

4. Rigoberto Uran (COL/CAN) 0:29.

5. Mikel Landa (ESP/SKY) 1:17.

Blackpink World Tour [Born Pink] In Cinemas

Starring: Rose, Jisoo, Jennie, Lisa

Directors: Min Geun, Oh Yoon-Dong

Rating: 3/5

Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
  • Priority access to new homes from participating developers
  • Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
  • Flexible payment plans from developers
  • Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
  • DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Lexus LX700h specs

Engine: 3.4-litre twin-turbo V6 plus supplementary electric motor

Power: 464hp at 5,200rpm

Torque: 790Nm from 2,000-3,600rpm

Transmission: 10-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 11.7L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh590,000

Teams

Punjabi Legends Owners: Inzamam-ul-Haq and Intizar-ul-Haq; Key player: Misbah-ul-Haq

Pakhtoons Owners: Habib Khan and Tajuddin Khan; Key player: Shahid Afridi

Maratha Arabians Owners: Sohail Khan, Ali Tumbi, Parvez Khan; Key player: Virender Sehwag

Bangla Tigers Owners: Shirajuddin Alam, Yasin Choudhary, Neelesh Bhatnager, Anis and Rizwan Sajan; Key player: TBC

Colombo Lions Owners: Sri Lanka Cricket; Key player: TBC

Kerala Kings Owners: Hussain Adam Ali and Shafi Ul Mulk; Key player: Eoin Morgan

Venue Sharjah Cricket Stadium

Format 10 overs per side, matches last for 90 minutes

Timeline October 25: Around 120 players to be entered into a draft, to be held in Dubai; December 21: Matches start; December 24: Finals

Updated: January 31, 2023, 9:30 AM`