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"I will be positioned in the same position by 2027," Starmer declared, adding that if our discussion went well, he might welcome the interviewer into Downing Street for another conversation next year.

For a PM, there's never truly downtime for those in the top job. Just an hour before we sat down, Sir Keir had been speaking with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and trying to understand what on earth had happened in Venezuela, where his close friend, US President Donald Trump, had just launched a strike against and detained its leader, Nicolás Maduro.

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

A Reboot for the New Year

But as the new year begins, Starmer appears to have had a kind of a revitalisation. Perhaps even just a bit of downtime with loved ones at Chequers, the prime minister's country retreat.

This appeared to have put him in improved morale than at the sluggish tail end of 2025, a terrible year politically for him.

But are he and his colleagues being unrealistic if they believe his fortunes are poised to get better?

Internal Doubts

The harsh reality for the leader is that many of his colleagues are convinced he's not very good at his job. Several of them would sooner gamble and remove him sooner rather than later.

However Starmer was rejecting the idea when we spoke on Saturday morning.

On several occasions he told me he'd be "judged at the general election", arguing no one would strip his five-year mandate from him – despite the fact that the best chance of halting Nigel Farage and Reform UK getting to No 10 might be for Labour to change its leader.

"This is the fight of our times and I intend to guide the party," he affirmed.

The Spring Test

The problem for the prime minister is that he will be judged far sooner than then – in a mega set of elections in May across the UK. He tried to argue, perhaps excessively, that they are concerning who runs local authorities, and who runs the governments in Holyrood or Cardiff – and unrelated to Westminster.

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

This did not stop Sir Keir implying that there were no circumstances under which he would step down, even if a his MPs challenged him for the job, should those elections prove disastrous for Labour.

Predicting a Turnaround

He tried to rationalise his unpopularity by saying the electorate was naturally anxious for things to improve. He aimed to convince the interviewer, and the public, that 2026 would be different.

The economy would strengthen despite rising unemployment, he said, when plans the administration enacted during their first turbulent year began to show results.

• He vowed to empty asylum hotels ahead of the current target date of 2029, but he wouldn't put a firm date on that.
• He noted too, with the proviso that it wasn't a foregone conclusion, that a peace deal in Ukraine felt a greater possibility now than at any time since Russia's comprehensive invasion.
• He revealed for the first time that Western partners were now considering how to combine US and European forces to ensure security for Ukraine – to guard a possible peace.

His big point is that soon the country will "turn the corner".

Political Challenges

The PM may have spoken with greater vigour than observed from him for a some time – more relaxed, maybe, with a longer slot to talk.

However, in spite of encountering calls from various quarters for a more decisive strategy, with much more political direction, more vigour, more pace and more immediacy, his points were repeated ones.

When he finds himself in such significant political trouble, does he need a new narrative?

No administration, and certainly not one that has been struggling in the polls for an extended period, has everything its as desired.

The Prime Minister's challenges are not just because government is hard, but because he and his colleagues have erred, including in the last few weeks.

Controversies and Dangers

The prime minister expressed regret that he regretted saying he was "happy" to see the return of the Egyptian-British activist Alaa Abd El Fattah to the UK after an controversy when comments he'd made in the past – such as calls for Zionists and police to be killed – came to light.

Sir Keir attributed it to "the process" for not realising what the activist had said before – a fancier way of saying not my fault.

And he is courting evident political dangers as the year gets going. His close relationship with the US president entails a new risk after Trump's intervention on Venezuela.

Having interviewed Sir Keir Starmer, a ex- human rights lawyer who opposed the war in Iraq, over a long period, the notion he would be content with these events seems implausible.

Policy Stances and Pressures

He told me he was a "career-long advocate of international law" but we "simply do not have the entire story at the moment".

Opponents wanted him to criticise the action before the interview. And the administration is expected to face further scrutiny to give an clear view in Parliament in the next few days.

There has also always been bubbling desire in the Labour ranks to revisit some of the outcomes of Brexit.

Sir Keir rejects he's pursuing that, but his new specific commitment to move closer with the European trading bloc – the huge economic European market – will likely provoke accusations that he is reneging on his promise never to try to reverse the results that flowed from Brexit.

A commitment to align with more of the single market will delight many on his side of the party, but it is prime ammunition for Reform and the Conservatives to