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"I will remain in the same seat by 2027," Starmer remarked, noting that if the interview proceeded smoothly, he might welcome the interviewer into Number 10 for a follow-up conversation in the coming year.

There is never truly time off for leaders. In the hour before the interview began, Starmer had been in calls with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and attempting to work out exactly what had happened in Venezuela, where his key friend, US President Donald Trump, had recently targeted and seized its leader, Nicolás Maduro.

When the discussion, which was considerably lengthier than usual, had ended, Maduro had been indicted in New York.

A Refresh for the New Year

As the new year begins, Sir Keir appears to have had something of a revitalisation. Perhaps even just a little downtime with loved ones at Chequers, the prime minister's country retreat.

This seemed to have left him in improved morale than at the sluggish conclusion of 2025, a awful political year for him.

But are he and his colleagues being unrealistic if they think his fortunes are set to turn around?

Party Concerns

The harsh truth for the leader is that numerous of his party members think he's underperforming at his job. A faction of them would rather gamble and oust him sooner rather than later.

But Sir Keir was dismissing such talk when we spoke on Saturday morning.

On several occasions he told me he'd be "judged at the next election", insisting no one would strip his electoral mandate from him – even if the best chance of stopping Nigel Farage and Reform UK reaching No 10 might be for Labour to change leader.

"This is the struggle of our lifetime and I intend to be at the forefront," he said.

The May Elections

The problem for the PM is that he will be assessed long before then – in a mega set of elections in May across the UK. He sought to argue, perhaps excessively, that they are about who runs councils, and who runs the governments in Holyrood or Cardiff – and unrelated to Westminster.

True – in part. But although he may be reluctant to acknowledge it, No 10 will be held accountable by those elections too.

This did not stop Sir Keir suggesting that there were no situation under which he would resign, even if one of his MPs ran against him for the job, if those elections be catastrophic for Labour.

Predicting a Turnaround

He sought to explain his low poll ratings by saying the electorate was reasonably impatient for things to improve. He tried to assure the interviewer, and the public, that the coming months would be distinct.

The economic situation would improve notwithstanding rising unemployment, he argued, when strategies the administration implemented during their initial rocky year began to take effect.

• He committed to empty asylum hotels ahead of the current deadline of 2029, but he wouldn't put a specific date on that.
• He said too, with the caveat that it was not a foregone conclusion, that a peace deal in Ukraine felt more likely now than at any point since Russia's major invasion.
• He revealed for the first time that Western allies were now talking about how to integrate US and European forces to provide security for Ukraine – to safeguard a possible peace.

His central argument is that in 2026 the country will "turn the corner".

Familiar Arguments

The PM may have spoken with more energy than I've seen from him for a while – calmer, perhaps, with a longer slot to talk.

But despite facing calls from various quarters for a bolder strategy, with increased political clarity, more vigour, more pace and more urgency, his explanations were familiar ones.

Given that he is in such significant political peril, does he need a new narrative?

No government, and certainly not one that has been unpopular for many months, has everything its own way.

Sir Keir's challenges are not just because governing is challenging, but because he and his team have faltered, even in the recent past.

Controversies and Dangers

The PM expressed regret that he was sorry for saying he was "pleased" to see the return of the Egyptian-British activist Alaa Abd El Fattah to the UK following an controversy when past remarks he'd previously made – including calls for Zionists and police to be killed – resurfaced.

Sir Keir blamed "the process" for failing to identify what the activist had said before – a fancier way of saying it wasn't his responsibility.

And he is facing evident political perils as the year progresses. His close relationship with the US president acquires a new complication after Trump's military action on Venezuela.

Based on years of interviewing Sir Keir Starmer, a former human rights lawyer who opposed the war in Iraq, over his career, the thought he would be content with this kind of intervention seems unlikely.

Policy Stances and Pressures

He stated he was a "lifelong champion of international law" but we "simply do not have the complete details at the moment".

Some demanded condemn it prior to the interview. And the administration is expected to face increased demands to give an clear view in Parliament in the next few days.

There has also long been simmering tension in the Labour ranks to undo or remake some of the outcomes of Brexit.

The PM rejects he's pursuing that, but his new firmer plan to align more closely with the single market – the vast economic European trading zone – will probably trigger accusations that he is reneging on his pledge never to try to undo the choices that flowed from Brexit.

A commitment to integrate into more of the single market will delight many on his backbenches, but it is prime ammunition for Reform and the Conservatives to