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Sir Keir Starmer traveled to Wales' northern region on Thursday to declare the construction of a new nuclear power station. This is a major policy announcement with both local and national implications. However, the prime minister did not dedicate much time in Wales to promoting solutions for the UK's energy needs. Rather, he spent it trying to put an end to the briefing controversy within Labour's leadership, telling reporters that Downing Street had not undermined the health secretary’s ambitions in recent days.

As such, Sir Keir’s day acted as a microcosm of what his prime ministership has evolved into more generally. On the one hand, he desires his government to be doing, and to be seen to be doing, significant actions. Conversely, he is incapable to achieve this because of the manner he – and, to an extent, the nation more generally – now practices political and governmental affairs.

The Prime Minister cannot change the political culture single-handedly, but he is able to do something about his personal involvement in it. The simple truth is that he could manage the centre of government far better than he does. If he did this, he could discover that the nation was in less dismay about his government than it currently is, and that he was getting his messages across more effectively.

Staffing Issues in Downing Street

Some of the problems in Number 10 are about individuals. The interpersonal relations of every Downing Street operation are hard to know well from outside. Yet it appears clear that Sir Keir does not make good personnel choices, or stick with them. Maybe he is overly occupied. Possibly he lacks genuine interest. However, he must to improve his performance, not do things slowly or incompletely.

• He dithered about assigning the crucial role of top civil servant to Chris Wormald.
• He appointed a former official his chief of staff, then replaced her with Morgan McSweeney.
• He brought a Treasury figure in from the Treasury as his chief secretary.
• His communications chiefs have been frequently replaced.
• Political and policy advisers have come and gone.
• It is a mess.

Structural Challenges at the Heart of the Administration

All premiers devote excessive time overseas and on foreign affairs, areas where Sir Keir ought to assign more tasks, and insufficient time talking to MPs and hearing the citizens. Premiers also allocate too much time doing media, which Sir Keir compounds by performing inadequately. Yet leaders cannot express surprise when their political appointees, who tend to be party loyalists or ambitious in politics, overstep boundaries or become the focus, as Mr McSweeney now has.

The biggest issues, however, are structural. It would be beneficial to think that Sir Keir read the Institute for Government’s March 2024 report on reforming the government's central operations. His failure to address these matters in the summer or afterward suggests he did not. The often abject performance of Labour’s time in office suggests recommendations like restructuring the functions of the central government office and Downing Street, and separating the jobs of cabinet secretary and head of the civil service, are now urgent.

The political pre-eminence of PMs far outdistances the support available to them. As a result, all aspects suffer, and many tasks are poorly executed or ignored.

This isn't Sir Keir’s fault alone. He is the victim of past failures along with the architect of current mistakes. Yet individuals who expected Sir Keir might get a grip on the centre and prioritize governmental structures have been disappointed. Sadly, the biggest loser from this shortcoming is Sir Keir personally.