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Sir Keir Starmer traveled to north Wales this past Thursday to announce the construction of a fresh nuclear energy facility. This is a major policy announcement with implications at local and countrywide levels. However, the prime minister did not devote much time in Wales to promoting solutions for the UK's power requirements. Instead, he spent it attempting to put an end to the Labour leadership briefing row, informing journalists that No 10 had not undermined the health secretary’s ambitions earlier this week.

As such, Sir Keir’s day acted as a microcosm of what his prime ministership has evolved into more generally. On the one hand, he desires his administration to be performing, and to be perceived as performing, important things. On the other hand, he is unable to accomplish this due to the way he – and, to an extent, the nation as a whole – now conducts politics and government.

The Prime Minister cannot change the political culture single-handedly, but he is able to take action about his personal involvement in it. The plain fact is that he could run the centre of government far better than he currently does. Should he achieve this, he could discover that the country was in less dismay about his administration than it currently is, and that he was getting his messages across more successfully.

Personnel Problems in No 10

A number of the problems in Number 10 are about individuals. The personal dynamics of any No 10 regime are difficult to discern well from outside. But it seems obvious that Sir Keir fails to make sound staffing decisions, or stick with them. Perhaps he is too busy. Perhaps he is not really interested. However, he must to improve his performance, avoid slow progress or by halves.

• He dithered about assigning the key job of top civil servant to a senior official.
• He made a former official his chief of staff, then substituted her with Morgan McSweeney.
• He brought a Treasury figure in from the Treasury as his deputy.
• His communications chiefs have chopped and changed.
• Political and policy advisers have come and gone.
• The situation is chaotic.

Systemic Issues at the Core of Government

Every prime minister spend too much time overseas and on foreign affairs, where Sir Keir should delegate more, and too little talking to MPs and hearing the public. Premiers also allocate too much time engaging with the press, which Sir Keir compounds by doing it poorly. But premiers cannot claim to be surprised when their politically appointed staff, who are often party activists or ambitious in politics, cross lines or become the focus, as the chief of staff has recently.

The most significant problems, however, are structural. It would be beneficial to think that Sir Keir read the Institute for Government’s March 2024 report on overhauling the centre of government. His inability to grip these issues last July or afterward suggests he did not. The often abject experience of Labour’s time in office suggests recommendations like restructuring the functions of the Cabinet Office and No 10, and dividing the jobs of cabinet secretary and civil service head, are currently critical.

The political pre-eminence of PMs far outdistances the assistance provided to them. Consequently, all aspects suffer, and much is done badly or neglected.

This is not Sir Keir’s sole responsibility. He is the casualty of past failures along with the author of present ones. Yet individuals who expected Sir Keir would take control of the core and take the machinery of government seriously have been let down. Unfortunately, the primary casualty from this failure is Sir Keir personally.