Comment: My wish list to the New Prime Minister

I want our country to succeed and thrive for every person, and we need politics to work well if that is to be possible. Fractured and divisive politics cause people to turn to political extremes, both left and right, in search of answers. Andy Burnham is our new Prime Minister and if he can truly achieve a better kind of politics, I wish him well. But we are going to need real change to tackle big issues affecting everybody.

Firstly, social care, which every government comes in and says is a second-term issue; but this cannot be kicked down the road any longer. In order to have a functioning health service, we need to address both the front and the back door. If we reform the way we deliver social care in this country and stop treating it as a poor relation to the healthcare system, the whole system will start to work as it should again.

We are going to need real change to tackle big issues affecting everybody.

Secondly, devolution. Andy is a fierce advocate for it, particularly for the creation of mayoralties, but he has to recognise that not every area has a geographical identity or centre like Greater Manchester. If we are to have a mayor for Sussex, what real powers will they be given for strategic investment, and how will we ensure that investment reaches our corner of West Sussex rather than becoming concentrated in Brighton?

Last week, the government let everyone in West Sussex down again by delaying the decision on the shape the new local authorities will take. This came after district councils across West Sussex, along with MPs, had been sounding the alarm that the government's proposals would leave the coastal authority (covering Arun, Adur and Worthing) with a £45 million deficit on day one, effectively bankrupting it and leaving it unable to deliver services. This delay now leaves local authorities without any clarity, yet they are still expected to plan for elections to the new unitary councils in May 2028.

Finally, Andy must get a handle on the failing water companies that pollute our rivers, seas and harbour, yet never seem to pay the price. I was appalled to read a recent government report showing that Southern Water pleaded guilty in court to causing environmental damage to precious chalk streams. We are seeing the same monumental failure in the River Lavant, which continues to have high levels of nitrates and phosphates downstream from the wastewater treatment works. I have written to both Southern Water and the Environment Agency in recent weeks to ask what plans they have to address this crisis in our local river before it is too late.

Every new Prime Minister starts with a degree of political goodwill. Let’s hope Andy uses it wisely to affect real change.