10 Things Rishi Sunak Didn't Mention and How They Affect Esher & Walton
Rishi Sunak's recent speech may have left many questions unanswered, particularly for the residents of Esher & Walton. Here, we delve into the issues that were conspicuously absent from his address and discuss their local impact.
1. Mortgages
National Perspective: The average mortgage has gone up by £220 a month in the year since the catastrophic mini-budget, according to the Bank of England.
Esher & Walton: Four out of 10 households have a mortgage, and monthly repayment increases hurt, particularly when the average price of a home is twice as unaffordable as the average in the rest of the country. Source: Commons library
2. Food Prices
National Perspective: Food prices have risen by 10% in the past year as the cost of living goes through the roof.
Esher & Walton: Hard-working nurses, teachers, carers, and families are struggling with the cost of living in Esher & Walton to the extent that demand for local food banks has tripled in the past six years. Source: The Guardian
3. Energy Bills
National Perspective: One in three families across England will pay higher energy bills this winter than last, rising to one in two poorer households.
Esher & Walton: The poverty divide is growing in Elmbridge, with child poverty rates growing faster in poorer areas. Three-quarters of families with children living in poverty are hard-working families.
4. Ambulances
National Perspective: Ambulance delays were their worst on record last winter, and there has been no clear plan on how to prevent a similar crisis this time round.
Esher & Walton: The NHS target of 18 minutes for Category 2 ambulance calls, which covers urgent incidents like strokes and potential heart attacks, is being missed in Elmbridge; waits have increased by 43% between 2019 and 2022. The average response time for Category 1 calls, which are the most urgent and life-threatening, was nearly 10 minutes, up nearly 18% since 2019. Source: FOI data related to this PR
5. Sewage
National Perspective: Raw sewage was dumped into rivers and coastlines 824 times a day last year after Conservative MPs repeatedly voted to allow water companies to continue the filthy practice.
Esher & Walton: Thames Water discharged sewage into the River Mole 220 times in 2022, lasting 3088 hours in total. On just one day last month, sewage was pumped into the Mole at Esher for 13 hours. Source: Elmbridge Lib Dem Twitter
6. Dentists
National Perspective: 4.4 million children did not see an NHS dentist in the past 12 months despite the NHS recommending that they go once a year.
Esher & Walton: 101,857 children in Surrey have not been seen by an NHS dentist in the last 12 months. 520,405 of Surrey’s adults not seen by an NHS dentist in the past 2 years. Source: Elmbridge Lib Dems
7. Pensions
National Perspective: 12 million pensioners could lose out after Rishi Sunak failed to commit to keeping the triple lock in future years.
Esher & Walton: 19,000 pensioners live in Esher and Walton. If they’re looking to Sunak, in the midst of a cost of living crisis, for help to ease any financial worries about the future, then they are looking in the wrong place.
8. Rents
National Perspective: Rents have risen by an average of £110 per month over the past year since the mini-budget sent interest rates soaring.
Esher & Walton: Esher and Walton’s demographics are changing; the number of people in privately rented accommodation has increased by 23% between 2011 and 2021 and now covers 16% of households here, yet the median rent on a two-bedroom property in Elmbridge is now 40% higher than the national figure. Source: NEF report
9. Concrete Roofs (RAAC)
National Perspective: 41 hospitals and 174 schools are impacted by the RAAC scandal, which Sunak failed to mention once despite his own role in slashing funding to fix crumbling buildings.
Esher & Walton: Children at a school in the constituency affected by the RAAC scandal had no disruption to their attendance or learning this term due to the prompt action of the school leadership and their good governance. Thousands of children across the country were not so lucky.
10. Sleaze
National Perspective: Rishi Sunak didn’t mention disgraced ministers like Liz Truss, Boris Johnson, or Chris Pincher, who have received over £500,000 in taxpayer payouts after quitting or being sacked.
Esher & Walton: Sunak is offering more of the same: the same old sleaze, corruption, and woeful standards of integrity and accountability. Here’s why Monica Harding is the change we need in Esher and Walton: to deliver on our priorities and to demand better for everyone who lives here. #MakeItMonica