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Sir Keir Starmer traveled to Wales' northern region on Thursday to declare the building of a fresh nuclear energy facility. This represents a significant policy event with both local and national implications. However, the PM did not devote extensive time in Wales to promoting answers for the UK's power requirements. Rather, he spent it attempting to draw a line under the briefing controversy within Labour's leadership, informing journalists that Downing Street had not undermined the health secretary’s ambitions earlier this week.

As such, Sir Keir’s day acted as a microcosm of what his premiership has evolved into more generally. Firstly, he wants his government to be performing, and to be seen to be doing, important things. Conversely, he is incapable to accomplish this because of the way he – and, to an extent, the nation more generally – now practices political and governmental affairs.

Sir Keir is unable to change the political culture single-handedly, but he is able to do something about his own role in it. The plain fact is that he could manage the centre of government far better than he currently does. If he did this, he could discover that the nation was in less despair about his administration than it is, and that he was communicating his points more effectively.

Staffing Issues in Downing Street

Some of the problems in Downing Street relate to personnel. The interpersonal relations of any No 10 regime are difficult to discern well from outside. Yet it appears clear that Sir Keir fails to make sound staffing decisions, or stick with them. Maybe he is overly occupied. Perhaps he is not really interested. However, he must to improve his performance, not do things slowly or by halves.

• He dithered about assigning the crucial role of cabinet secretary to a senior official.
• He appointed Sue Gray his top aide, then replaced her with a political strategist.
• He recruited a Treasury figure in from the Treasury as his chief secretary.
• His communications chiefs have chopped and changed.
• Political and policy advisers have entered and exited.
• The situation is chaotic.

Systemic Issues at the Core of the Administration

Every prime minister devote excessive time abroad and on international matters, areas where Sir Keir ought to assign more tasks, and insufficient time conversing with MPs and listening to the public. Premiers also allocate too much time doing media, which Sir Keir compounds by doing it poorly. Yet leaders cannot express surprise when their political appointees, who tend to be party activists or ambitious in politics, overstep boundaries or become the story, as Mr McSweeney has recently.

The biggest issues, however, are structural. It would be beneficial to think that Sir Keir read the a think tank's March 2024 report on overhauling the government's central operations. His inability to address these matters last July or since implies he did not. The frequently dismal experience of Labour’s time in office suggests recommendations like restructuring the roles 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 PMs greatly exceeds the support available to them. Consequently, everything currently suffers, and much is done badly or neglected.

This isn't Sir Keir’s sole responsibility. He is the casualty of previous shortcomings as well as the author of present ones. But those who hoped Sir Keir would take control of the centre and take the machinery of government seriously have been disappointed. Sadly, the primary casualty from this failure is Sir Keir personally.