LONDON – If Keir Starmer dreamt that his shake-up of the Downing Street operation yesterday would lend him a new air of strategic competence, he was badly mistaken.
As recently as Sunday, Downing Street was reportedly insisting any plans for a reshuffle ‘had been put on ice’.
By yesterday morning, in a sign of the confusion and chaos that defines this administration, the sackings and promotions had duly begun.
Some members of the Cabinet, who were on their first day back at Westminster after the summer recess, only realised what was going on, thanks to social media. One minister harrumphed to me last night: ‘‘The first I knew was when I saw it on Twitter.’’
There are two key lessons to be drawn from yesterday’s events.
The first is that Starmer is increasingly appointing his own economic experts at the expense of his Chancellor, Rachel Reeves – a move that surely bodes ill for her.
The second is that he is clearly convinced he has a problem with ‘comms’ – that is, getting the Government’s message across – rather than with the business of governing itself.
As for the fate of the chancellor, one minister put it succinctly when I asked him what it all meant: ‘‘Oh, it’s simple. Rachel is f***ed.’’ The most radical change was Darren Jones moving from his role as Chief Secretary to the Treasury to the new post of Chief Secretary to the Prime Minister.
This reeked of panic and little wonder: A poll on Friday had given Nigel Farage’s Reform UK a 15 per cent lead over Labour.
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