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Prime Minister Starmer visited north Wales on Thursday to reveal the construction of a fresh nuclear energy facility. This is a major policy announcement with implications at local and countrywide levels. Yet, the prime minister did not devote extensive time in Wales to promoting answers for the UK's energy needs. Instead, he spent it attempting to draw a line under the Labour leadership briefing row, informing journalists that Downing Street had not briefed against the health secretary's goals in recent days.

As such, Sir Keir’s day acted as a small-scale example of what his premiership has now become more generally. Firstly, he desires his administration to be performing, and to be perceived as performing, important things. On the other hand, he is unable to accomplish this due to the way he – and, to an extent, the country as a whole – now practices political and governmental affairs.

Sir Keir is unable to change the culture of politics on his own, but he can do something about his own role in it. The plain fact is that he could run the centre of government far better than he currently does. Should he achieve this, he could discover that the nation was in less despair about his administration than it currently is, and that he was getting his messages across more effectively.

Staffing Issues in No 10

A number of the problems in Downing Street are about individuals. The personal dynamics of any No 10 regime are difficult to discern accurately from the exterior. Yet it appears clear that Sir Keir does not make sound staffing decisions, or maintain 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 hesitated about assigning the key job of cabinet secretary to Chris Wormald.
• He made Sue Gray his chief of staff, then substituted her with Morgan McSweeney.
• He brought a Treasury figure in from the finance ministry as his deputy.
• His communications chiefs have been frequently replaced.
• Advisors on politics and policy have come and gone.
• The situation is chaotic.

Systemic Issues at the Core of the Administration

All premiers devote excessive time overseas and on foreign affairs, where Sir Keir should delegate more, and insufficient time talking to MPs and listening to the public. 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 ambitious in politics, overstep boundaries or become the story, as Mr McSweeney now has.

The biggest issues, however, are systemic. It would be beneficial to believe 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 last July or since implies he did not. The frequently dismal performance of the Labour administration indicates IfG proposals like reorganizing the functions of the Cabinet Office and Downing Street, and dividing the positions of top official and head of the civil service, are currently critical.

The dominant political role of PMs greatly exceeds the support available to them. Consequently, everything currently suffers, and many tasks are poorly executed or neglected.

This is not Sir Keir’s fault alone. He stands as the victim of previous shortcomings as well as the author of present ones. But those who hoped Sir Keir might get a grip on the centre and take the machinery of government seriously have been let down. Sadly, the primary casualty from this failure is Sir Keir himself.