Number 10 Downing St Is Not Fit for Purpose

Prime Minister Starmer traveled to Wales' northern region this past Thursday to reveal the development of a fresh nuclear energy facility. This is a major policy announcement with implications at local and countrywide levels. However, the prime minister did not dedicate much time in Wales to advocating solutions for the UK's energy needs. Instead, he spent it trying to draw a line under the Labour leadership briefing row, informing journalists that Downing Street had not undermined the health secretary’s ambitions in recent days.

Therefore, Sir Keir’s day acted as a small-scale example of what his prime ministership has now become overall. On the one hand, he desires his administration to be performing, and to be seen to be doing, important things. Conversely, he is incapable to accomplish this due to the way he – and, partly, the nation as a whole – now practices political and governmental affairs.

The Prime Minister is unable to transform the political culture single-handedly, but he is able to do something about his own role in it. The simple truth is that he could run the centre of government much more effectively than he currently does. Should he achieve this, he might find that the country was in less despair about his government than it is, and that he was getting his messages across more successfully.

Staffing Issues in No 10

Some of the problems in Downing Street relate to individuals. The interpersonal relations of any No 10 regime 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. Perhaps he is not really interested. However, he must to improve his performance, avoid slow progress or by halves.

• He dithered about giving the key job of cabinet secretary to a senior official.
• He made a former official his top aide, then substituted her with a political strategist.
• He recruited Darren Jones in from the finance ministry as his deputy.
• His communications chiefs have been frequently replaced.
• Advisors on politics and policy have entered and exited.
• It is a mess.

Structural Challenges at the Core of Government

All premiers spend too much time overseas 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 worsens by doing it poorly. Yet leaders cannot claim to be surprised when their political appointees, who are often party activists or ambitious in politics, overstep boundaries or become the focus, as Mr McSweeney has recently.

The most significant problems, though, are systemic. 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 failure to grip these issues in the summer or afterward implies he did not. The frequently dismal performance of Labour’s time in office suggests recommendations like reorganizing the roles of the Cabinet Office and Downing Street, and separating the positions of top official and civil service head, are now urgent.

The dominant political role of prime ministers far outdistances the support available to them. Consequently, everything currently suffers, and many tasks are poorly executed or neglected.

This is not Sir Keir’s fault alone. He is the victim of previous shortcomings as well as the architect of present ones. But those who hoped Sir Keir might get a grip on the centre and take the machinery of government seriously have been disappointed. Sadly, the primary casualty from this failure is Sir Keir personally.