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"I'll remain in this office by 2027," the Prime Minister remarked, joking that if the interview proceeded smoothly, he might invite us into his official residence for another chat in 2026.

For a PM, there's rarely ever break for those in the top job. Just an hour before the interview began, the PM had been in calls with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and attempting to decipher precisely 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 our lengthy talk, which was considerably lengthier than normal, had finished, Maduro had been charged in New York.

A Refresh for the New Year

With the year commences, Starmer appears to have had a kind of a refresh. Perhaps even just a little downtime with his family at Chequers, the prime minister's rural getaway.

This appeared to have put him in better spirits than at the sluggish end of 2025, a terrible annus horribilis for him.

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

Internal Doubts

The grisly truth for the leader is that numerous of his colleagues are convinced he's ineffective at his job. Some of them would sooner gamble and remove him this year.

However Starmer was having none of it when we spoke on Saturday morning.

On several occasions he stated he'd be "assessed at the poll", maintaining no one would remove his term from him – despite the fact that the best chance of preventing Nigel Farage and Reform UK entering No 10 might be for Labour to switch leader.

"We are in the fight of our generation and I intend to be at the forefront," he said.

The May Elections

The challenge for the PM is that he will be assessed long before then – in a huge set of elections in May throughout the UK. He tried to protest, perhaps too much, that they are concerning who runs councils, and who runs the governments in Holyrood or Cardiff – and unrelated to Westminster.

Accurate – to some extent. But although he may not want to acknowledge it, No 10 will be held accountable by those elections too.

Despite this, Sir Keir stating that there were no circumstances under which he would step down, should one of his colleagues ran against him for the job, should those elections prove very poor for Labour.

An Optimistic Outlook

He tried to rationalise his low poll ratings by saying the electorate was naturally eager for things to improve. He sought to persuade me, and the public, that this year would be distinct.

The economy would strengthen notwithstanding rising unemployment, he argued, when policies the administration implemented during their first turbulent year began to take effect.

• He vowed to empty asylum hotels before the current target date of 2029, but he did not put a specific date on that.
• He added too, with the caveat that it wasn't a foregone conclusion, that a peace agreement in Ukraine felt a greater possibility now than at any time since Russia's comprehensive invasion.
• He stated for the first occasion 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 big point is that in 2026 the country will "see an improvement".

Political Challenges

The prime minister may have communicated with renewed vitality than I've seen from him for a some time – calmer, maybe, with a longer slot to talk.

However, in spite of encountering calls from various quarters for a bolder strategy, with increased political clarity, more dynamism, more speed and more urgency, his points were well-known ones.

When he finds himself in such significant political difficulty, does he need a different script?

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

The Prime Minister's problems are not just because government is difficult, but because he and his colleagues have made mistakes, including in the last few weeks.

Controversies and Dangers

The PM told me that he regretted saying he was "delighted" to welcome back the Egyptian-British activist Alaa Abd El Fattah to the UK after an outcry when past remarks he'd made in the past – such as calls for Zionists and police to be killed – came to light.

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

And he is inviting clear political dangers as the year progresses. His close relationship with the US president takes on a new complication after Trump's strikes on Venezuela.

Based on years of interviewing Sir Keir Starmer, a former human rights lawyer who was against the war in Iraq, over many years, the notion he would be comfortable with this kind of intervention seems unlikely.

International Law and Brexit

He stated he was a "lifelong proponent of international law" but we "just haven't got the full picture at the moment".

Some demanded condemn it prior to the interview. And the administration is likely to face further scrutiny to give an definitive view in Parliament in the coming days.

And there has long been bubbling pressure in the Labour ranks to revisit some of the consequences of Brexit.

Sir Keir rejects he's doing that, but his new firmer pledge to align more closely with the European trading bloc – the huge economic European market – will probably provoke howls that he is breaking his pledge never to try to undo the choices that flowed from Brexit.

A decision to cosy up to more of the single market will please a faction on his own side, but it is easy fodder for Reform and the Conservatives to