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Prime Minister Starmer visited north Wales on Thursday to announce the building of a fresh nuclear energy facility. This represents a significant policy event with implications at local and countrywide levels. Yet, the prime minister did not dedicate much time in Wales to promoting answers for the UK's energy needs. Instead, he used the time trying to draw a line under the briefing controversy within Labour's leadership, telling journalists that No 10 had not undermined the health secretary’s ambitions in recent days.

Therefore, Sir Keir’s day acted as a microcosm of what his premiership has now become overall. On the one hand, he desires his government to be performing, and to be seen to be doing, significant actions. Conversely, he is unable to achieve this because of the manner he – and, to an extent, the country more generally – now practices politics and government.

Sir Keir cannot change the political culture on his own, 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 currently does. Should he achieve this, he could discover that the country was in less despair about his administration than it is, and that he was communicating his points more successfully.

Staffing Issues in No 10

Some of the problems in Downing Street are about 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 maintain them. Maybe he is overly occupied. Possibly he lacks genuine interest. However, he must to up his game, not do things slowly or incompletely.

• He hesitated about giving the crucial role of top civil servant to Chris Wormald.
• He made Sue Gray his top aide, then replaced her with a political strategist.
• He brought a Treasury figure in from the finance ministry as his chief secretary.
• His communications chiefs have chopped and changed.
• Advisors on politics and policy have entered and exited.
• The situation is chaotic.

Systemic Issues at the Heart of Government

Every prime minister spend too much time overseas and on international matters, where Sir Keir should delegate more, and insufficient time conversing with parliamentarians and listening to the citizens. Prime ministers also allocate too much time engaging with the press, which Sir Keir worsens by performing inadequately. Yet leaders cannot express surprise when their political appointees, who tend to be party activists or politically ambitious, overstep boundaries or become the story, as the chief of staff now has.

The most significant problems, though, are systemic. It would be good to believe that Sir Keir reviewed the a think tank's spring 2024 report on reforming 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 indicates IfG proposals like reorganizing the roles of the central government office and Downing Street, and dividing the positions of cabinet secretary and head of the civil service, are currently critical.

The political pre-eminence of PMs far outdistances the assistance provided to them. As a result, everything currently suffers, and many tasks are poorly executed or ignored.

This isn't Sir Keir’s fault alone. He is the casualty of previous shortcomings along with the author of present ones. But those who hoped Sir Keir would take control of the core and take the machinery of government seriously have been disappointed. Sadly, the primary casualty from this shortcoming is Sir Keir personally.