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Prime Minister Starmer visited north Wales this past Thursday to announce the building of a fresh nuclear energy facility. This is a major policy announcement with both local and national implications. Yet, the PM did not dedicate much time in Wales to promoting answers for the UK's energy needs. Instead, he used the time trying to put an end to the Labour leadership briefing row, informing journalists that No 10 had not briefed against the health secretary’s ambitions earlier this week.

Therefore, Sir Keir’s day served as a small-scale example of what his prime ministership has now become more generally. On the one hand, he desires his administration to be doing, and to be perceived as performing, important things. Conversely, he is incapable to accomplish this due to the manner he – and, partly, the country more generally – now practices political and governmental affairs.

The Prime Minister cannot transform the culture of politics on his own, but he is able to take action about his personal involvement in it. The plain fact is that he could manage the government's core much more effectively than he currently does. Should he achieve this, he could discover that the country was in less despair about his government than it currently is, and that he was communicating his points more successfully.

Personnel Problems in Downing Street

Some of the problems in Number 10 are about individuals. The personal dynamics of every Downing Street operation are hard to know accurately from the exterior. But it seems obvious that Sir Keir fails to make good personnel choices, or maintain them. Perhaps he is too busy. Possibly he lacks genuine interest. However, he must to improve his performance, avoid slow progress or incompletely.

• He dithered about assigning the crucial role of top civil servant to a senior official.
• He appointed a former official his chief of staff, then replaced her with a political strategist.
• He brought Darren Jones in from the finance ministry as his chief secretary.
• His media advisors have chopped and changed.
• Advisors on politics and policy have entered and exited.
• The situation is chaotic.

Structural Challenges at the Heart of the Administration

All premiers spend too much time abroad and on international matters, areas where Sir Keir ought to assign more tasks, and insufficient time conversing with parliamentarians and hearing the citizens. Prime ministers also allocate too much time engaging with the press, which Sir Keir worsens by performing inadequately. Yet leaders cannot claim to be surprised when their political appointees, who are often party activists or politically ambitious, overstep boundaries or become the story, as the chief of staff now has.

The most significant problems, however, are structural. It would be good to believe that Sir Keir reviewed the Institute for Government’s March 2024 report on reforming the centre of government. His failure to address these matters in the summer or since suggests he did not. The often abject performance of Labour’s time in office indicates recommendations like reorganizing the functions of the Cabinet Office and No 10, and dividing the positions of cabinet secretary and civil service head, are now urgent.

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

This isn't Sir Keir’s fault alone. He stands as the casualty of past failures along with the architect of present ones. Yet individuals who expected Sir Keir would take control of the core and prioritize governmental structures have been let down. Sadly, the biggest loser from this failure is Sir Keir himself.