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Sir Keir Starmer traveled to Wales' northern region on Thursday to announce the building of a new nuclear power station. This is a significant policy event with both local and national implications. However, the PM did not dedicate extensive 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, informing reporters that No 10 had not undermined the health secretary’s ambitions earlier this week.

As such, Sir Keir’s day served as a small-scale example of what his prime ministership has evolved into more generally. On the one hand, he wants his government to be doing, and to be seen to be doing, significant actions. On the other hand, he is unable to accomplish this due to the manner he – and, partly, the nation more generally – now conducts political and governmental affairs.

Sir Keir cannot change the political culture on his own, but he is able to take action about his personal involvement in it. The simple truth is that he could run the government's core far better than he currently does. If he did this, he could discover that the nation was in less dismay about his government than it is, and that he was communicating his points more effectively.

Personnel Problems in No 10

A number of the problems 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 does not make good personnel choices, or maintain them. Maybe he is overly occupied. Possibly he lacks genuine interest. But he needs to up his game, avoid slow progress or by halves.

• He hesitated about giving the crucial role of cabinet secretary to Chris Wormald.
• He appointed a former official his chief of staff, then replaced her with Morgan McSweeney.
• He recruited Darren Jones in from the Treasury as his chief secretary.
• His media advisors have been frequently replaced.
• Political and policy advisers have come and gone.
• It is a mess.

Systemic Issues at the Core of Government

Every prime minister spend too much time overseas and on international matters, areas where Sir Keir ought to assign more tasks, and too little talking to MPs and listening to the citizens. Premiers also allocate too much time doing media, which Sir Keir worsens by doing it poorly. But premiers cannot express surprise when their political appointees, who are often party loyalists or politically ambitious, cross lines or become the story, as Mr McSweeney has recently.

The most significant problems, however, are structural. It would be beneficial to believe that Sir Keir read the Institute for Government’s spring 2024 study on overhauling the government's central operations. His failure to address these matters in the summer or since suggests he did not. The frequently dismal experience of the Labour administration indicates recommendations like reorganizing the roles of the Cabinet Office and No 10, and dividing the jobs of top official and head of the civil service, are currently critical.

The dominant political role of prime ministers greatly exceeds the assistance provided to them. Consequently, everything currently suffers, and many tasks are poorly executed or neglected.

This is not Sir Keir’s sole responsibility. He is the victim of past failures as well as the architect of present ones. Yet individuals who expected Sir Keir might get a grip on the centre and take the machinery of government seriously have been let down. Unfortunately, the biggest loser from this failure is Sir Keir himself.