Rishi Sunak finally got to play the statesman this week as he made his first White House trip as Prime Minister.
The Tory leader touched down in Washington DC on Tuesday for a whirlwind two days of meetings with senior Republicans and Democrats, as well as business leaders.
He ended his trip with a joint press conference with Joe Biden where they announced a new economic pact, the Atlantic Declaration.
It was far from what people had hoped with the PM failing to make any progress on a free trade deal, which was promised in the 2019 Tory manifesto.
With not even a trade deal as consolation, Mr Sunak is set to fly back to a whole host of domestic issues.
British families are facing rising prices across the board, record NHS waiting times and ongoing strikes, with Labour consistently polling way ahead of the beleaguered Tories.
The PM must also grapple with restive backbenchers, the small boats row he promised to fix and the spectres of his two predecessors in No10.
We look at some of the most pressing issues in the PM’s in-tray.
Small boats row
Mr Sunak will fly into a House of Lords revolt where his Illegal Migration bill is facing fierce backlash.
Peers have called for the highly controversial legislation to be delayed until after an impact assessment is published.
But in an unusual turn of events, the PM has threatened to force the bill through using the rarely-used Parliament Act to overrule experts in the House of Lords if they try to table amendments.
Mr Sunak’s threat is likely to indicate his fear of Tory backbenchers, from whom he could face a separate backlash if he doesn’t force the bill through.
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It comes as net migration rose to 606,000 in the year to December 2022 - a new record calendar year record.
The Archbishop of Canterbury has been among peers to savage the "morally unacceptable" plans to lock up refugees who reach the UK by small boats.
Boris Johnson's Partygate 'lies' probe
The hangover of his predecessor but one continues to plague Mr Sunak’s premiership.
The Privileges Committee is due to publish its investigation into whether Boris Johnson lied to parliament about lockdown rules being broken in No10.
The former Partygate PM was hauled in for a marathon 195-minute evidence session in March - and MPs could advise a suspension if they rule he did mislead the House.
A 10-day ban or longer could trigger a process that may result in a snap by-election in his Uxbridge and South Ruislip seat in North West London - and ultimately oust him from Parliament.
If the latter happens, Mr Sunak will have a huge uproar on his hands from Mr Johnson’s devoted allies, who throughout the probe have been conjuring up stories that the investigation is a set-up.
Mr Johnson is understood to have been given the findings of the committee - and has two weeks to respond.
Strikes still unresolved
The PM has been heavily criticised for failing to resolve public sector strikes with the one year mark since workers voted to begin industrial action having been recently passed.
Trade union leaders have demanded Mr Sunak stop “messing around” and end the disruption by giving staff the pay and conditions they deserve.
During his trip to DC, senior doctors announced they could strike for two days next month. Junior doctors also have a 72-hour walkout from June 14.
Train users are still battling strike action with the RMT and Aslef unions’ disputes ongoing.
Likewise children face further disruption to their education as teachers strike action continues.
Civil and public servants working in 106 government departments voted to renew their strike ballot for another six months.
Cost of living crisis
Prices of everything from food to cleaning items have continued to remain at unaffordable levels.
Latest figures reveal two litres of Asda's Just Essentials Thin Bleach rose by 90% between April 17 and 3 May 3.
Plus a worrying study has warned food prices will soon overtake energy bills as the cost of living crisis enters a "new phase".
Households will soon be paying an average of £1,000 more on food each year compared to before the Covid pandemic, experts fear - compared to £900 more on energy.
Food inflation has already reached a 50 year high this year, and researchers from the Resolution Foundation think tank say it will get even worse in the coming months.
When he was in DC, Mr Sunak said he will take personal responsibility if the cost of living crisis is not helped.
He said “of course it's on me personally” if he fails to bring down inflation and bring the UK out of recession by the end of the year.
NHS waiting lists hit new record
As Mr Sunak wimped out of throwing the first pitch at a baseball match during his US trip, patients back in the UK watched the NHS continue to crumble.
The NHS waiting list increased to a record 7.42million this week despite repeated Tory pledges to reduce it.
Latest NHS England data shows the appointments backlog increased by 83,000 last month to the highest since records began in 2007.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has made cutting waiting lists one of his priorities for 2023, pledging in January that "lists will fall and people will get the care they need more quickly".
Some 11,477 people are estimated to have been waiting more than 18 months to start routine hospital treatment at the end of April. This is up from 10,737 at the end of March.
The Government and NHS England set the ambition of eliminating all waits of more than 18 months by April of this year.
The latest figures show an estimated 371,111 people in England had been waiting more than a year to start routine hospital treatment at the end of April.
This is up from 359,798 at the end of March.
Boris Johnson and Liz Truss's honours' lists
Mr Sunak was handed a political poisoned chalice when he entered No 10 - the resignation honours' lists of his two immediate predecessors.
Boris Johnson, who was forced from No10 last summer, has nominated up to 50 allies for peerages and gongs, including loyalist MP Nadine Dorries.
Liz Truss, the 49-day PM who almost crashed the British economy, has also submitted a "list of shame" of up to a dozen officials in her Downing Street team.
The PM has two options: either block his predecessor's appointments and risk a major political row, or accept the nominations and risk a major political row.
It appears Mr Sunak has opted for the second route and reports suggest the Government could publish the lists in the coming weeks.
Offering a hint of the row to come, the Liberal Democrats said: "Boris Johnson caused crisis after crisis in this country - if Rishi Sunak rewards his failure it's just proof it is one rule for the Conservatives and another for everyone else."
Covid inquiry headache
The official inquiry into the Government's handling of the Covid crisis begins its first major hearings on Monday - examining the UK's preparedness.
The issue of Tory austerity is expected to feature prominently in the first phase with unions and the bereaved warning the cuts weakened the country's response.
The inquiry - led by Baroness Heather Hallett - aims to conclude public hearings by summer 2026 and could provide a major headache for Mr Sunak in the build-up to the next election.
The Government is also engaged in a costly legal battle with the inquiry chairwoman Baroness Heather Hallett over the release of unredacted WhatsApp communications.
The messages involve those between ex-PM Boris Johnson and dozens of high-profile figures including Mr Sunak during the height of the crisis.
The judicial review - launched by the Cabinet Office - is seeking the block the release and is expected to reach court by the end of June.
Labour miles ahead in polls
At the local elections in May the Tories out-performed their worst expectations and lost over 1,000 council seats across the country.
While a general election is not expected until 2024 the Conservatives are still trailing Labour in the national polls and many believe the party is heading for defeat.
If the PM approves Mr Johnson's resignation honours list he is expected to face by-elections in Ms Dorries's constituency and that of former Cop26 President, Alok Sharma.
While Ms Dorries had a majority of over 20,000 votes at the 2019 election, Mr Sharma's majority stood at just 4,117 and could fall to Labour.
Earlier this week a major poll also suggested Keir Starmer's party is on course for a 140-seat majority with the Tories facing a wipe-out (albeit, with Labour's lead vulnerable to a large number of undecided voters and the threat of the Reform Party).
Such polls should be taken with a pinch of salt but they do highlight the mammoth task Mr Sunak has turn around his party's fortunes after 13 years in power.
Inflation & mortgages
In January the PM pledged to halve inflation in January when the figure was 10.1%.
The figure from late May is still sky-high at 8.7% with people's bills soaring and the Bank of England has responded by hiking interest rates.
Mortgages could be a ticking time bomb for the Government, with borrowers still facing the biggest squeeze since Ms Truss's disastrous mini-Budget.
About 1.5 million borrowers are due to come off an existing fixed rate deal this year, and will inevitably face a major hike when then renew.
It could mean the Tories are yet to feel the full political impact of Ms Truss's short-lived term in office as voters - just as the general election looms.
Tory backbench revolt over Army cuts
The PM could face a backbench revolt over Army cuts when a Defence Command Paper is published later this month(JUNE).
Sources have signalled the Government will push ahead with slashing the number of soldiers from 82,000 to 72,500 - despite the war raging in Ukraine.
Senior Conservative MPs have already railed against the plans since they were first announced in June 2021 - eight months before Russia invaded Ukraine - and could stage a rebellion unless Sunak performs a U-turn.
However, No10 has previously pointed to providing better kit for remaining forces rather than increasing numbers or halting cuts.
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