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Sir Keir Starmer traveled to Wales' northern region on Thursday to reveal the construction of a fresh nuclear energy facility. This is a major policy announcement with both local and national implications. However, the PM did not dedicate extensive time in Wales to advocating answers for the UK's energy needs. Rather, he spent it attempting to draw a line under the briefing controversy within Labour's leadership, telling reporters that No 10 had not briefed against the health secretary's goals earlier this week.

As such, Sir Keir’s day served as a small-scale example of what his premiership has now become overall. Firstly, he desires his administration to be performing, and to be perceived as performing, important things. On the other hand, he is unable to achieve this due to the manner he – and, partly, the nation more generally – now practices political and governmental affairs.

Sir Keir is unable to transform the culture of politics on his own, but he can take action about his own role in it. The plain fact is that he could run the government's core much more effectively than he currently does. Should he achieve this, he might find that the nation was in less despair about his government than it is, and that he was getting his messages across more successfully.

Staffing Issues in No 10

Some of the problems in Number 10 are about individuals. The interpersonal relations of any No 10 regime are hard to know accurately from the exterior. But it seems obvious that Sir Keir does not make good personnel choices, or stick with them. Maybe he is overly occupied. Possibly he lacks genuine interest. But he needs to up his game, not do things slowly or incompletely.

• He hesitated about giving the key job of top civil servant to a senior official.
• He made a former official his top aide, then substituted her with a political strategist.
• He brought a Treasury figure in from the Treasury as his chief secretary.
• His communications chiefs have chopped and changed.
• Advisors on politics and policy have come and gone.
• The situation is chaotic.

Systemic Issues at the Heart of the Administration

All premiers spend too much time overseas and on international matters, areas where Sir Keir ought to assign more tasks, and insufficient time talking to MPs and listening to the citizens. Premiers also allocate too much time engaging with the press, which Sir Keir worsens by performing inadequately. But premiers cannot express surprise when their political appointees, who are often party activists or ambitious in politics, cross lines or become the story, as the chief of staff has recently.

The most significant problems, however, are structural. It would be beneficial to think that Sir Keir read the Institute for Government’s March 2024 study on reforming the government's central operations. His inability to address these matters last July or afterward suggests he did not. The frequently dismal performance of the Labour administration suggests IfG proposals like reorganizing the functions of the central government office and Downing Street, and dividing the positions of cabinet secretary and civil service head, are currently critical.

The political pre-eminence of prime ministers far outdistances the assistance provided to them. Consequently, everything currently suffers, and much is done badly or ignored.

This is not Sir Keir’s fault alone. He is the victim of past failures along with the author of present ones. Yet individuals who expected Sir Keir might get a grip on the centre and prioritize governmental structures have been disappointed. Unfortunately, the biggest loser from this failure is Sir Keir personally.