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"I will be positioned in the same office by 2027," Sir Keir Starmer declared, noting that if our interview went well, he might invite the interviewer into Downing Street for a follow-up talk next year.

There is never truly downtime for those in the top job. Shortly before the interview began, the PM had been in calls with Ukraine's Volodymyr Zelensky and attempting to work out what on earth had occurred in Venezuela, where his big friend, US President Donald Trump, had recently launched a strike against and detained its leader, Nicolás Maduro.

When the discussion, which was much longer than typical, had concluded, Maduro had been formally accused in New York.

Renewed Energy for the New Year

As the year starts, Starmer appears to have had a kind of a reboot. Perhaps even just a little relaxation with the family at Chequers, the prime minister's country retreat.

That certainly appeared to have resulted in better spirits than at the saggy tail end of 2025, a dreadful year politically for him.

But are he and his colleagues kidding themselves if they believe his fortunes are set to improve?

Internal Doubts

The uncomfortable truth for the leader is that a significant number of his fellow MPs think he's not very good at his job. Some of them would sooner gamble and oust him this year.

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

Repeatedly he told me he'd be "judged at the general election", arguing no one would strip his term from him – even if the most effective strategy of stopping Nigel Farage and Reform UK getting to No 10 could be for Labour to replace leader.

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

The May Elections

The problem for the PM is that he will be scrutinised long before then – in a huge set of elections in May across the UK. He attempted to protest, maybe too much, that they are about who runs councils, and who runs the devolved administrations in Holyrood or Cardiff – and not a verdict on Westminster.

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

Despite this, Sir Keir suggesting that there were no circumstances under which he would walk away, should a his colleagues challenged him for the job, if those elections prove disastrous for Labour.

Predicting a Turnaround

He sought to explain his low poll ratings by saying the public was reasonably impatient for things to improve. He aimed to persuade me, and the public, that 2026 would be different.

The economy would improve in the face of rising unemployment, he said, when plans the administration enacted during their first rocky year began to take effect.

• He committed to close asylum hotels ahead of the current deadline of 2029, but he did not set a firm date on that.
• He added too, with the caveat that it was not a foregone conclusion, that a settlement in Ukraine felt closer now than at any time since Russia's comprehensive invasion.
• He stated for the first time that Western allies were now considering how to coordinate US and European forces to ensure security for Ukraine – to safeguard a possible peace.

His big message is that in 2026 the country will "turn the corner".

Political Challenges

The prime minister may have spoken with more energy than observed from him for a while – more relaxed, maybe, with more time to talk.

But despite encountering calls from many directions for a more decisive approach, with much more political clarity, more urgency, more pace and more immediacy, his arguments were well-known ones.

When he finds himself in this much political difficulty, does he need a change of tack?

No administration, and especially not one that has been struggling in the polls for an extended period, gets everything its own way.

The Prime Minister's challenges are not only because governing is difficult, but because he and his colleagues have faltered, even in the last few weeks.

Regrets and Risks

The prime minister admitted that he regretted saying he was "delighted" to see the return of the Egyptian-British activist Alaa Abd El Fattah to the UK after an backlash when statements 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 system" 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 risks as the year unfolds. His alliance with the US president acquires a new risk after Trump's military action on Venezuela.

Having interviewed Sir Keir Starmer, a former human rights lawyer who was against the war in Iraq, over a long period, the thought he would be at ease with this kind of intervention seems far-fetched.

International Law and Brexit

He stated he was a "longtime champion of international law" but we "just lack the full picture at the moment".

Opponents demanded denounce it prior to the interview. And the government is expected to face further scrutiny to give an definitive view in Parliament in the next few days.

And there has always been simmering desire in the Labour party to undo or remake some of the outcomes of Brexit.

Sir Keir denies he's doing that, but his new specific pledge to align more closely with the European trading bloc – the giant economic European trading zone – will probably trigger protests that he is going back on his vow never to try to reverse the decisions that flowed from Brexit.

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