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Sir Keir Starmer visited Wales' northern region this past Thursday to declare the construction of a fresh nuclear energy facility. This is a significant policy event with both local and national implications. Yet, the PM did not devote much time in Wales to promoting answers for the UK's power requirements. Instead, he spent it attempting to put an end to the briefing controversy within Labour's leadership, telling reporters that No 10 had not briefed against the health secretary’s ambitions in recent days.

As such, Sir Keir’s day served as a microcosm of what his premiership has evolved into overall. Firstly, he desires his government to be doing, and to be seen to be doing, important things. On the other hand, he is incapable to accomplish this because of the manner he – and, to an extent, the nation as a whole – now conducts politics and government.

Sir Keir is unable to change the political culture single-handedly, but he can do something about his own role in it. The plain fact is that he could run the centre of government much more effectively than he currently does. If he did this, he could discover that the country was in less dismay about his administration than it currently is, and that he was getting his messages across more effectively.

Staffing Issues in Downing Street

Some of the issues in Number 10 are about individuals. The personal dynamics of every Downing Street operation are hard to know well from outside. Yet it appears clear that Sir Keir fails to make good personnel choices, or maintain them. Perhaps he is too busy. Perhaps he is not really interested. But he needs to up his game, not do things slowly or incompletely.

• He dithered about giving the key job of cabinet secretary to a senior official.
• He appointed 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.
• Political and policy advisers have entered and exited.
• The situation is chaotic.

Structural Challenges at the Core of Government

Every prime minister spend too much time abroad and on foreign affairs, areas where Sir Keir ought to assign more tasks, and insufficient time conversing with parliamentarians and hearing the public. Prime ministers also spend too much time doing media, which Sir Keir compounds by doing it poorly. Yet leaders cannot claim to be surprised when their politically appointed staff, who tend to be party activists or ambitious in politics, overstep boundaries or become the story, as Mr McSweeney has recently.

The biggest issues, though, are structural. It would be good to think that Sir Keir read the a think tank's spring 2024 report on reforming the government's central operations. His inability to grip these issues last July or since implies he did not. The frequently dismal performance of Labour’s time in office indicates IfG proposals like reorganizing the functions of the central government 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 prime ministers greatly exceeds the assistance provided to them. Consequently, all aspects suffer, and much is done badly or neglected.

This is not Sir Keir’s fault alone. He stands as the casualty of past failures along with the author of current mistakes. But those who hoped Sir Keir might get a grip on the centre and take the machinery of government seriously have been disappointed. Unfortunately, the biggest loser from this failure is Sir Keir personally.