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"I'll remain in this position by 2027," the Prime Minister declared, adding that if the interview went well, he might welcome the interviewer into Number 10 for another chat next year.

For a PM, there's never any downtime for leaders. Shortly before we sat down, the PM had been on the phone with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and working to understand precisely had occurred in Venezuela, where his close ally, US President Donald Trump, had recently launched a strike against and detained its leader, Nicolás Maduro.

Once the discussion, which was considerably lengthier than normal, had finished, Maduro had been formally accused in New York.

A Reboot for the New Year

With the new year begins, Starmer seems to have had something of a refresh. Perhaps even just some a rest with loved ones at Chequers, the prime minister's country retreat.

This seemed to have left him in a more positive mood than at the sluggish conclusion of 2025, a awful year politically for him.

Yet, are he and his allies being unrealistic if they believe his standing are set to turn around?

Internal Doubts

The uncomfortable reality for the PM is that numerous of his fellow MPs believe he's not very good at his job. Several of them would rather gamble and remove him this year.

But Sir Keir was rejecting the idea in the interview on Saturday morning.

On several occasions he stated he'd be "evaluated at the poll", arguing nobody would take his five-year mandate from him – even if the most effective strategy of stopping Nigel Farage and Reform UK reaching No 10 might be for Labour to change leader.

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

Upcoming Local Votes

The issue for the PM is that he will be scrutinised well ahead of then – in a major set of elections in May throughout the UK. He tried to argue, perhaps too much, that they are concerning who runs local authorities, and who runs the devolved administrations in Holyrood or Cardiff – and unrelated to Westminster.

Accurate – in part. 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 suggesting that there were no circumstances under which he would step down, should one of his colleagues contested his leadership for the job, should those elections prove disastrous for Labour.

Predicting a Turnaround

He attempted to explain his low poll ratings by saying the electorate was understandably anxious for things to get better. He tried to persuade me, and the nation, that 2026 would be a change.

The economic situation would strengthen despite rising unemployment, he claimed, when plans the administration implemented during their initial rocky year began to take effect.

• He pledged to close asylum hotels ahead of the current deadline of 2029, although he did not set a firm date on that.
• He said too, with the qualification that it wasn't a done deal, that a peace agreement in Ukraine felt a greater possibility now than at any point since Russia's major invasion.
• He stated for the first occasion that Western allies were now discussing how to integrate US and European forces to provide security for Ukraine – to safeguard a possible peace.

His central message is that soon the country will "turn the corner".

Political Challenges

The PM may have spoken with greater vigour than observed from him for a while – more relaxed, perhaps, with more time to talk.

However, in spite of encountering demands from many directions for a more decisive approach, with much more political vision, more vigour, more speed and more urgency, his explanations were well-known ones.

When he finds himself in such significant political peril, is a different approach required a different script?

No government, and especially not one that has been struggling in the polls for many months, gets everything its own way.

The Prime Minister's problems are not just because government is challenging, but because he and his team have made mistakes, including in the recent past.

Controversies and Dangers

The PM admitted that he regretted saying he was "delighted" to see the return of the Egyptian-British activist Alaa Abd El Fattah to the UK following an outcry when past remarks he'd previously made – such as calls for Zionists and police to be killed – came to light.

Sir Keir blamed "the process" for failing to identify what the activist had said before – a fancier way of saying it wasn't his responsibility.

And he is courting obvious political risks as the year progresses. His friendship with the US president takes on a new complication 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 his career, the notion he would be at ease with such action seems implausible.

Policy Stances and Pressures

He stated he was a "longtime advocate of international law" but the public "just haven't got the complete details at the moment".

Opponents demanded condemn it before we spoke. And the administration is likely to face increased demands to give an definitive view in Parliament in the coming days.

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

Sir Keir denies he's pursuing that, but his new specific pledge to integrate further with the European trading bloc – the huge economic European trading zone – will likely elicit protests that he is reneging on his promise never to try to undo the decisions that stemmed from Brexit.

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