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Sir Keir Starmer visited 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 prime minister did not devote extensive time in Wales to promoting solutions for the UK's energy needs. Instead, he spent it attempting to put an end to the Labour leadership briefing row, telling journalists 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. On the one hand, he wants his government to be performing, and to be perceived as performing, significant actions. Conversely, he is unable to achieve this because of the way he – and, to an extent, the nation as a whole – now conducts political and governmental affairs.

Sir Keir is unable to transform the culture of politics on his own, but he can do something about his personal involvement in it. The plain fact is that he could manage the government's core far better than he currently does. Should he achieve this, he might find that the country was in less dismay about his administration than it is, and that he was communicating his points more effectively.

Personnel Problems in Downing Street

A number of the issues in Number 10 relate to personnel. The personal dynamics of every Downing Street operation are hard to know well from outside. But it seems obvious that Sir Keir does not make good personnel choices, or stick with them. Perhaps he is too busy. Possibly he lacks genuine interest. But he needs to improve his performance, avoid slow progress or incompletely.

• He hesitated about giving the crucial role of cabinet secretary to a senior official.
• He made a former official his top aide, then replaced her with Morgan McSweeney.
• He recruited a Treasury figure in from the finance ministry as his deputy.
• His communications chiefs have chopped and changed.
• Political and policy advisers have come and gone.
• It is a mess.

Structural Challenges at the Core of the Administration

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 parliamentarians and listening to the public. Premiers also allocate too much time doing media, which Sir Keir worsens by performing inadequately. Yet leaders cannot express surprise when their politically appointed staff, who tend to be party activists or ambitious in politics, cross lines or become the story, as Mr McSweeney now has.

The most significant problems, though, are structural. It would be beneficial to think that Sir Keir read the a think tank's spring 2024 report on overhauling the government's central operations. His inability to address these matters last July or afterward implies he did not. The often abject performance of Labour’s time in office suggests recommendations like reorganizing the functions of the central government office and Downing Street, and separating the positions of cabinet secretary and head of the civil service, are currently critical.

The dominant political role of PMs far outdistances the assistance provided to them. Consequently, everything currently suffers, and much is done badly or ignored.

This is not Sir Keir’s sole responsibility. He stands as the victim of previous shortcomings along with the author of current mistakes. Yet individuals who expected Sir Keir would take control of the centre and prioritize governmental structures have been let down. Sadly, the biggest loser from this failure is Sir Keir himself.