Rishi Sunak: Britain’s problems won’t all go away next year

Rishi Sunak has warned that Britain’s problems will not all go away in 2023 in a downbeat New Year message to the nation. In his first such message as Prime Minister, Mr Sunak acknowledged that 2022 had been “tough” but argued that outside factors were to blame. He cited the recovery from the Covid pandemic and the impact of Russia’s “barbaric” invasion of Ukraine as key causes of the economic problems hitting the UK. There was no mention of his predecessor, Liz Truss, whose tax-cutting mini-Budget sent interest rates soaring and eventually led to her ousting. Mr Sunak said: “Now, I’m not going to pretend that all our problems will go away in the new year. “But 2023 will give us an opportunity to showcase the very best of Britain on the world stage, continuing to stand with our Ukrainian friends against Putin’s brutality and defending freedom and democracy wherever we find it under threat. “In this historic year of His Majesty the King’s coronation, we will come together with