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Prime Minister Starmer traveled to Wales' northern region on Thursday to announce the building of a fresh nuclear energy facility. This represents a major policy announcement with both local and national implications. Yet, the prime minister did not dedicate much time in Wales to advocating solutions for the UK's energy needs. Rather, he used the time attempting to draw a line under the briefing controversy within Labour's leadership, informing journalists that Downing Street had not briefed against the health secretary’s ambitions earlier this week.

As such, 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 desires his administration to be doing, and to be perceived as performing, important things. On the other hand, he is incapable to achieve this due to the way he – and, partly, the nation more generally – now practices political and governmental affairs.

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

Staffing Issues in Downing Street

Some of the issues in Downing Street are about personnel. The personal dynamics of any No 10 regime are hard to know well from outside. Yet it appears clear that Sir Keir fails to make sound staffing decisions, or maintain them. Perhaps he is too busy. Possibly he lacks genuine interest. However, he must to up his game, not do things slowly or by halves.

• He hesitated about assigning the key job of cabinet secretary to a senior official.
• He appointed Sue Gray his chief of staff, then replaced her with a political strategist.
• He recruited Darren Jones in from the finance ministry as his deputy.
• His media advisors have been frequently replaced.
• Political and policy advisers have come and gone.
• It is a mess.

Systemic Issues at the Heart of the Administration

Every prime minister devote excessive time overseas and on international matters, where Sir Keir should delegate more, and insufficient time talking to MPs and listening to the citizens. Premiers also spend too much time doing media, which Sir Keir worsens by performing inadequately. Yet leaders cannot express surprise when their politically appointed staff, who are often party activists or politically ambitious, overstep boundaries or become the story, as Mr McSweeney now has.

The most significant problems, however, are systemic. It would be good to think that Sir Keir read the a think tank's March 2024 study on overhauling the government's central operations. His inability to grip these issues in the summer or afterward suggests he did not. The frequently dismal experience of the Labour administration suggests IfG proposals like reorganizing the functions of the central government office and Downing Street, and dividing the positions of cabinet secretary and civil service head, are now urgent.

The dominant political role of PMs far outdistances the support available to them. Consequently, everything currently suffers, and much is done badly or neglected.

This is not Sir Keir’s sole responsibility. He stands as the casualty of past failures as well as the author of present ones. But those who hoped Sir Keir might get a grip on the core and take the machinery of government seriously have been let down. Unfortunately, the primary casualty from this shortcoming is Sir Keir himself.