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Prime Minister Starmer visited Wales' northern region on Thursday to announce the development of a new nuclear power station. This is a major policy announcement with implications at local and countrywide levels. However, the prime minister did not dedicate much time in Wales to advocating solutions for the UK's energy needs. Rather, he used the time trying to put an end to the Labour leadership briefing row, informing journalists that Downing Street had not briefed against the health secretary’s ambitions earlier this week.

Therefore, Sir Keir’s day served as a small-scale example of what his prime ministership has evolved into more generally. On the one hand, he wants his government to be performing, and to be perceived as performing, important things. Conversely, he is unable to accomplish this due to the way he – and, partly, the nation as a whole – now conducts politics and government.

The Prime Minister is unable to transform the culture of politics single-handedly, but he can take action about his own role in it. The plain fact is that he could manage the centre of government much more effectively than he currently does. If he did this, he might find that the country was in less dismay about his government than it is, and that he was getting his messages across more successfully.

Personnel Problems in No 10

Some of the issues in Downing Street relate to personnel. The personal dynamics of every Downing Street operation are difficult to discern well from outside. But it seems obvious that Sir Keir fails to make sound staffing decisions, or maintain them. Maybe he is overly occupied. Possibly he lacks genuine interest. But he needs to up his game, not do things slowly or by halves.

• He hesitated about giving the key job of top civil servant to Chris Wormald.
• He made a former official his chief of staff, then replaced her with a political strategist.
• He recruited a Treasury figure in from the Treasury as his deputy.
• His media advisors have been frequently replaced.
• Advisors on politics and policy have entered and exited.
• It is a mess.

Structural Challenges at the Heart of the Administration

Every prime minister devote excessive time abroad and on international matters, areas where Sir Keir ought to assign more tasks, and too little conversing with MPs and listening to the public. Prime ministers also spend too much time doing media, which Sir Keir worsens by doing it poorly. Yet leaders cannot claim to be surprised when their political appointees, who tend to be party activists or politically ambitious, cross lines or become the story, as Mr McSweeney has recently.

The biggest issues, however, are systemic. It would be beneficial to believe that Sir Keir reviewed the Institute for Government’s spring 2024 report on overhauling the centre of government. His inability to grip these issues last July or afterward suggests he did not. The frequently dismal experience of Labour’s time in office indicates IfG proposals like reorganizing the roles of the Cabinet Office and No 10, and separating the jobs of cabinet secretary and head of the civil service, are currently critical.

The political pre-eminence of prime ministers greatly exceeds the support available to them. As a result, all aspects suffer, and many tasks are poorly executed or ignored.

This is not Sir Keir’s fault alone. He is the casualty of previous shortcomings along with the architect of current mistakes. But those who hoped Sir Keir might get a grip on the core and take the machinery of government seriously have been disappointed. Sadly, the primary casualty from this failure is Sir Keir personally.