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Prime Minister Starmer traveled to north Wales this past Thursday to reveal the development of a new nuclear power station. This represents a major policy announcement with implications at local and countrywide levels. However, the PM did not devote much time in Wales to advocating solutions for the UK's power requirements. Rather, he spent it attempting to put an end to the briefing controversy within Labour's leadership, telling reporters that No 10 had not undermined the health secretary’s ambitions in recent days.

As such, Sir Keir’s day served as a microcosm of what his premiership has now become more generally. On the one hand, he wants his government to be doing, and to be seen to be doing, important things. On the other hand, he is incapable to accomplish this because of the manner he – and, partly, the country more generally – now conducts politics and government.

Sir Keir is unable to change the culture of politics single-handedly, but he is able to take action about his personal involvement in it. The plain fact is that he could run the government's core far better than he currently does. If he did this, he might find that the country was in less despair about his government than it is, and that he was getting his messages across more effectively.

Staffing Issues in No 10

A number of the problems in Number 10 relate to individuals. The interpersonal relations of any No 10 regime are difficult to discern well from outside. But it seems obvious that Sir Keir fails to make good personnel choices, or maintain them. Maybe he is overly occupied. Perhaps he is not really interested. But he needs to up his game, avoid slow progress or by halves.

• He hesitated about assigning the crucial role of top civil servant to a senior official.
• He made a former official his top aide, then substituted her with a political strategist.
• He recruited Darren Jones in from the Treasury as his deputy.
• His communications chiefs have chopped and changed.
• Political and policy advisers have entered and exited.
• It is a mess.

Structural Challenges at the Core of the Administration

Every prime minister spend too much time abroad and on foreign affairs, areas where Sir Keir ought to assign more tasks, and too little talking to MPs and hearing the public. Prime ministers also allocate too much time engaging with the press, which Sir Keir compounds by performing inadequately. Yet leaders cannot express surprise when their political appointees, who are often party activists or politically ambitious, overstep boundaries or become the focus, as the chief of staff now has.

The biggest issues, however, are systemic. It would be good to think that Sir Keir reviewed the a think tank's March 2024 report on overhauling the centre of government. His failure to grip these issues last July or afterward implies he did not. The frequently dismal experience of the Labour administration indicates IfG proposals like restructuring the roles of the central government office and No 10, and dividing the jobs of cabinet secretary and civil service head, are currently critical.

The political pre-eminence of PMs greatly exceeds the support available to them. As a result, all aspects suffer, and much is done badly or ignored.

This is not Sir Keir’s sole responsibility. He is the casualty of past failures as well as the author of present ones. But those who hoped Sir Keir would take control of the centre and prioritize governmental structures have been let down. Sadly, the primary casualty from this failure is Sir Keir personally.