Number 10 Downing Street Is Not Capable of the Task

Prime Minister Starmer visited north Wales this past 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 prime minister did not dedicate extensive time in Wales to advocating solutions for the UK's power requirements. Rather, he spent it trying to put an end to the briefing controversy within Labour's leadership, telling journalists that No 10 had not briefed against the health secretary’s ambitions earlier this week.

Therefore, Sir Keir’s day acted as a small-scale example of what his prime ministership has now become overall. Firstly, he wants his administration to be doing, and to be seen to be doing, important things. Conversely, he is incapable to accomplish this due to the manner he – and, to an extent, the nation as a whole – now practices politics and government.

The Prime Minister is unable to transform the culture of politics single-handedly, but he can do something about his personal involvement in it. The plain fact is that he could run the centre of government far better than he does. If he did this, he could discover that the country was in less despair about his administration than it is, and that he was communicating his points more effectively.

Personnel Problems in Downing Street

A number of the problems in Number 10 relate to personnel. The interpersonal relations of any No 10 regime are difficult to discern accurately from the exterior. Yet it appears clear that Sir Keir fails to make good personnel choices, or maintain them. Maybe he is overly occupied. Possibly he lacks genuine interest. However, he must to up his game, not do things slowly or by halves.

• He hesitated about assigning the key job of cabinet secretary to a senior official.
• He made a former official his chief of staff, then substituted her with Morgan McSweeney.
• He recruited a Treasury figure in from the Treasury as his chief secretary.
• His media advisors have been frequently replaced.
• Advisors on politics and policy have come and gone.
• The situation is chaotic.

Systemic Issues at the Heart of Government

All premiers devote excessive time abroad and on foreign affairs, areas where Sir Keir ought to assign more tasks, and too little talking to parliamentarians and hearing the citizens. Prime ministers also allocate too much time engaging with the press, which Sir Keir compounds by doing it poorly. Yet leaders cannot claim to be surprised when their politically appointed staff, who are often party loyalists or politically ambitious, cross lines or become the focus, as Mr McSweeney now has.

The most significant problems, however, are structural. It would be good to think that Sir Keir reviewed the Institute for Government’s March 2024 study on reforming the government's central operations. His inability to address these matters in the summer or afterward suggests he did not. The frequently dismal performance of the Labour administration indicates IfG proposals like reorganizing the functions of the central government office and No 10, and dividing the jobs of top official and civil service head, are now urgent.

The dominant political role of PMs far outdistances the assistance provided to them. Consequently, everything currently suffers, and many tasks are poorly executed 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. Yet individuals who expected Sir Keir might get a grip on the centre and prioritize governmental structures have been let down. Sadly, the biggest loser from this shortcoming is Sir Keir personally.