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Sir Keir Starmer visited Wales' northern region this past Thursday to announce the construction of a new nuclear power station. This represents a significant policy event with both local and national implications. Yet, the PM did not devote extensive 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, telling reporters that No 10 had not undermined the health secretary’s ambitions in recent days.

As such, Sir Keir’s day acted 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 doing, and to be perceived as performing, significant actions. Conversely, he is incapable to achieve this because of the manner he – and, partly, the nation as a whole – now practices political and governmental affairs.

The Prime Minister is unable to change the culture of politics on his own, but he can take action about his own role in it. The simple truth is that he could manage the centre of government far better than he does. Should he achieve this, he might find that the country was in less dismay about his administration than it is, and that he was getting his messages across more effectively.

Personnel Problems in Downing Street

Some of the problems in Number 10 relate to personnel. The interpersonal relations of every Downing Street operation are difficult to discern accurately from the exterior. But it seems obvious that Sir Keir fails to make good personnel choices, or stick with them. Perhaps he is too busy. Perhaps he is not really interested. However, he must to improve his performance, not do things slowly or incompletely.

• He dithered about giving the key job of top civil servant to Chris Wormald.
• He made Sue Gray his chief of staff, then replaced her with Morgan McSweeney.
• He brought 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 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 parliamentarians and listening to the public. Prime ministers also spend too much time doing media, which Sir Keir compounds by performing inadequately. But premiers cannot claim to be surprised when their political appointees, who are often party loyalists or ambitious in politics, cross lines or become the story, as the chief of staff has recently.

The biggest issues, however, are structural. It would be beneficial to think that Sir Keir reviewed the a think tank's March 2024 report on reforming the government's central operations. His failure to address these matters in the summer or afterward implies he did not. The frequently dismal performance of the Labour administration suggests recommendations like reorganizing the functions of the central government office and Downing Street, and dividing the positions of cabinet secretary and head of the civil service, are now urgent.

The political pre-eminence of PMs far outdistances the support available to them. As a result, all aspects suffer, and many tasks are poorly executed or neglected.

This is not Sir Keir’s sole responsibility. He is the casualty of previous shortcomings along with the author of present ones. Yet individuals who expected Sir Keir might get a grip on the centre and take the machinery of government seriously have been let down. Unfortunately, the primary casualty from this shortcoming is Sir Keir personally.