Keir Starmer’s Progress on Key Government Promises
Keir Starmer announced several key government targets at the end of 2024, focusing on areas such as NHS waiting lists, housebuilding, living standards, policing, early childhood development, and clean energy. This article reviews how well Keir Starmer is progressing with his promises to deliver change across these sectors.
Housing and NHS Waiting Times
One of Starmer’s major pledges is to build 1.5 million “safe and decent homes” in England by the end of the current Parliament in 2029. This target averages to about 300,000 new homes per year. However, current figures show that just over 200,000 homes are being added annually. Ministers have indicated that the rate will increase in the later years of the Parliament, but so far, the delivery rate is lower than in the final years of the previous Conservative government. Rising costs for building materials and energy, partly due to the Iran war, are expected to make this target more challenging.
Regarding healthcare, the government aims for 92% of patients in England to be seen within 18 weeks by the end of the Parliament. As of February 2026, 62.6% of patients were seen within this timeframe, an improvement from 58.8% when Labour took office in July 2024. The government has set an interim target of 65% by March 2026, with the last time the 92% target was met being in 2015.
Living Standards and Policing
Starmer’s plan includes raising living standards across the United Kingdom. Real household disposable income (RHDI) per person rose by 3.1% in 2024-25, the first increase after a period of stagnation between 2019 and 2024. However, forecasts from the Office for Budget Responsibility predict much slower growth in the coming years, with only 0.1% expected for 2025-26 and about 0.5% annually thereafter. GDP per capita grew by 1.1% in 2025 after no growth in 2024.
On policing, the government pledged to add 13,000 additional officers, police community support officers (PCSOs), and volunteer special constables in neighbourhood policing roles by the end of the Parliament. By February 2026, the first-year target of nearly 3,000 additional neighbourhood officers and PCSOs was surpassed. Despite this, the overall number of full-time equivalent police officers in England and Wales has declined since Labour took power.
Early Childhood Development and Clean Energy
The government aims for 75% of five-year-olds in England to be ready to learn when they start school, measured by a “good level of development” in the Early Years Foundation Stage assessment. In the 2024-25 school year, 68.3% of children met this standard, a slight increase from the previous year.
Regarding clean energy, the target is for at least 95% of electricity to come from clean power sources by 2030, a slight reduction from an earlier manifesto pledge of zero-carbon electricity by that year. In 2025, clean sources accounted for 73.3% of electricity generation in Great Britain, slightly lower than the previous year. The National Energy System Operator has stated that achieving a clean power system by 2030 is possible but will be at the limit of feasibility.
