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Prime Minister Starmer visited north Wales on Thursday to announce the building of a fresh nuclear energy facility. This is a significant policy event with implications at local and countrywide levels. However, the PM did not dedicate extensive time in Wales to advocating answers for the UK's power requirements. Instead, he used the time trying to put an end to the briefing controversy within Labour's leadership, telling reporters that Downing Street had not undermined the health secretary's goals in recent days.

As such, Sir Keir’s day served as a microcosm of what his prime ministership has evolved into more generally. On the one hand, he wants his administration to be performing, and to be seen to be doing, important things. Conversely, he is unable to accomplish this due to the manner he – and, to an extent, the country more generally – now practices politics and government.

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 government's core much more effectively than he does. Should he achieve this, he might find that the country was in less dismay about his administration than it currently is, and that he was getting his messages across more successfully.

Staffing Issues in No 10

A number of the issues in Downing Street are about personnel. The personal dynamics of every Downing Street operation are hard to know accurately from the exterior. Yet it appears clear that Sir Keir does not make sound staffing decisions, or maintain them. Maybe he is overly occupied. Possibly he lacks genuine interest. But he needs to improve his performance, avoid slow progress or incompletely.

• He hesitated about assigning the key job of cabinet secretary to Chris Wormald.
• He made Sue Gray his chief of staff, then replaced her with Morgan McSweeney.
• He brought a Treasury figure in from the finance ministry as his deputy.
• His media advisors have been frequently replaced.
• Advisors on politics and policy have come and gone.
• It is a mess.

Systemic Issues at the Core of Government

Every prime minister spend too much time overseas and on international matters, areas where Sir Keir ought to assign more tasks, and too little talking to MPs and listening to the citizens. Prime ministers also spend too much time engaging with the press, which Sir Keir worsens by performing inadequately. But premiers cannot claim to be surprised when their political appointees, who tend to be party activists or ambitious in politics, overstep boundaries or become the story, as the chief of staff has recently.

The most significant problems, however, are systemic. It would be good to believe that Sir Keir read the Institute for Government’s spring 2024 study on overhauling the government's central operations. His inability to grip these issues last July or since suggests he did not. The often abject experience of Labour’s time in office indicates recommendations like restructuring the roles of the Cabinet Office and No 10, and dividing the jobs of cabinet secretary and head of the civil service, are now urgent.

The dominant political role of PMs greatly exceeds the assistance provided to them. Consequently, all aspects suffer, and many tasks are poorly executed or ignored.

This is not Sir Keir’s sole responsibility. He stands as the victim of past failures as well as the architect of current mistakes. But those who hoped Sir Keir would take control of the centre and prioritize governmental structures have been disappointed. Unfortunately, the biggest loser from this shortcoming is Sir Keir himself.