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"I will be positioned in the same position by 2027," Sir Keir Starmer remarked, joking that if the conversation proceeded smoothly, he might invite us into his official residence for another chat in 2026.

For a PM, there's never truly downtime for prime ministers. Shortly before we sat down, Starmer had been in calls with Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky and trying to understand exactly what had transpired in Venezuela, where his close political chum, US President Donald Trump, had recently launched a strike against and detained its leader, Nicolás Maduro.

By the time the discussion, which was far more extended than normal, had concluded, Maduro had been formally accused in New York.

A Reboot for the New Year

With the year starts, Sir Keir seems to have had something of a revitalisation. Maybe even just a bit of relaxation with the family at Chequers, the prime minister's official country residence.

That certainly appeared to have left him in better spirits than at the sluggish conclusion of 2025, a terrible year politically for him.

But are he and his colleagues being unrealistic if they think his political fate are about to improve?

Party Concerns

The uncomfortable reality for the PM is that a significant number of his fellow MPs are convinced he's underperforming at his job. Several of them would sooner gamble and oust him in 2026.

But Sir Keir was dismissing such talk in the interview on Saturday morning.

Repeatedly he insisted he'd be "judged at the general election", maintaining no one would remove his electoral mandate from him – even if the best chance of preventing Nigel Farage and Reform UK reaching No 10 might be for Labour to switch leader.

"This is the struggle of our generation and I intend to lead us," he affirmed.

The Spring Test

The problem for the prime minister is that he will be assessed well ahead of then – in a mega set of elections in May throughout 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 not a verdict on Westminster.

Accurate – to some extent. But even though he may be reluctant to acknowledge it, No 10 will be judged by those elections too.

This did not stop Sir Keir implying that there were no situation under which he would walk away, even if one of his colleagues challenged him for the job, should those elections prove disastrous for Labour.

Promises of Improvement

He tried to account for his unpopularity by saying the electorate was naturally anxious for things to improve. He sought to convince me, and the nation, that the coming months would be different.

The economic situation would improve notwithstanding rising unemployment, he claimed, when plans the government enacted during their initial choppy year began to bear fruit.

• He committed to empty asylum hotels ahead of the current deadline of 2029, although he wouldn't set a new date on that.
• He said too, with the proviso that it wasn't a foregone conclusion, that a peace deal in Ukraine felt more likely now than at any point since Russia's full-scale invasion.
• He stated for the first time that Western allies were now considering how to combine US and European forces to offer security for Ukraine – to protect a potential peace.

His central message is that this year the country will "see an improvement".

Familiar Arguments

The prime minister may have spoken with greater vigour than I've seen from him for a some time – less tense, perhaps, with more time to talk.

However, in spite of encountering calls from various quarters for a more decisive strategy, with much more political clarity, more dynamism, more speed and more urgency, his arguments were familiar ones.

When he finds himself in this much political trouble, is a different approach required a change of tack?

No administration, and certainly not one that has been unpopular for many months, gets everything its as desired.

The Prime Minister's challenges are not just because governing is challenging, but because he and his colleagues have made mistakes, even in the recent past.

Regrets and Risks

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

Starmer blamed "procedures" for not realising what the activist had said before – a fancier way of saying it wasn't his responsibility.

And he is courting obvious political dangers as the year progresses. His close relationship with the US president takes on a new risk after Trump's military action 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 at ease with these events seems unlikely.

Policy Stances and Pressures

He stated he was a "longtime proponent of international law" but we "just lack the complete details at the moment".

Critics wanted him to condemn it before the interview. And the administration is likely to face more pressure to give an definitive view in Parliament in the near future.

There has also long been simmering desire in the Labour party to undo or remake some of the results of Brexit.

The PM denies he's doing that, but his new firmer plan to integrate further with the EU's single market – the vast economic European trading zone – will likely trigger accusations that he is reneging on his promise never to try to reverse the results that followed Brexit.

A commitment to cosy up to more of the single market will satisfy many on his own side, but it is prime ammunition for Reform and the Conservatives to