The State of It The key to the Keir Starmer puzzle: bonus with How To Win An Election
Mar 14, 2026
A sharp look at who really runs Downing Street and why decision-making feels muted. They probe a crisis in delegation through the Scunthorpe story and a controversial winter fuel cut. Power shifts and key departures expose a double-headed leadership. They also question whether recent crises could reshape political purpose.
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Passive Premiership Defined By Reading Time
- Keir Starmer's premiership is unusually passive, defined more by long reading sessions than proactive decision-making.
- Officials described 'reading time' and a premiership where the answer is expected to emerge from study rather than decisive political judgment, baffling staff.
Scunthorpe Crisis Showed Lack Of Political Judgment
- In the Scunthorpe steel crisis Starmer reportedly had no decisive view and deferred with 'what's the correct answer', leaving ministers to press him.
- Gabriel Pogrund recounts Johnny Reynolds pushing options while Starmer asked for the correct answer instead of choosing.
McSweeney's Centrality Created A Category Error
- Morgan McSweeney was the central political operator whose workload and relationships exceeded what one chief of staff could sustainably manage.
- Maguire and Pogrund argue McSweeney was drowning, cannot both transform the party and govern, and his role created a category error.
