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"I'll be sitting in the same position by 2027," Sir Keir Starmer declared, adding that if our interview proceeded smoothly, he might welcome us into his official residence for another conversation next year.

There is never truly downtime for those in the top job. In the hour before our chat started, the PM had been on the phone with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and attempting to decipher what on earth had transpired in Venezuela, where his big political chum, US President Donald Trump, had just attacked and captured its leader, Nicolás Maduro.

Once the discussion, which was far more extended than usual, had concluded, Maduro had been indicted in New York.

A Reboot for the New Year

But as the year commences, Sir Keir appears to have had something of a refresh. Maybe even just a bit of relaxation with loved ones at Chequers, the prime minister's official country residence.

This appeared to have left him in improved morale than at the sluggish end of 2025, a terrible annus horribilis for him.

But are he and his allies kidding themselves if they believe his political fate are set to improve?

Internal Doubts

The uncomfortable reality for the PM is that numerous of his fellow MPs think he's underperforming at his job. A faction of them would rather take a risk and oust him this year.

However Starmer was rejecting the idea during our conversation on Saturday morning.

Repeatedly he told me he'd be "judged at the poll", insisting no one would strip his five-year mandate from him – even if the most effective strategy of halting Nigel Farage and Reform UK entering No 10 may be for Labour to change its leader.

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

Upcoming Local Votes

The problem for the prime minister is that he will be assessed long before then – in a huge set of elections in May throughout the UK. He attempted to argue, perhaps too much, that they are concerning who runs local authorities, and who runs the devolved administrations in Holyrood or Cardiff – and not a verdict on Westminster.

True – to some extent. But even though he may not want to concede it, No 10 will be held accountable by those elections too.

This did not stop Sir Keir stating that there were no scenario under which he would resign, even if one of his MPs contested his leadership for the job, should those elections be very poor for Labour.

Promises of Improvement

He attempted to rationalise his low poll ratings by saying the voters was naturally impatient for things to get better. He tried to persuade the interviewer, and the nation, that this year would be a change.

The economic situation would recover despite rising unemployment, he argued, when policies the administration put in place during their initial turbulent year began to take effect.

• He vowed to shut asylum hotels before the current deadline of 2029, although he did not set a firm date on that.
• He noted too, with the qualification that it wasn't a foregone conclusion, that a peace deal in Ukraine felt closer now than at any point since Russia's full-scale invasion.
• He disclosed for the first time that Western partners were now considering how to integrate US and European forces to offer security for Ukraine – to safeguard a potential peace.

His big point is that this year the country will "see an improvement".

Familiar Arguments

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

However, in spite of encountering pressure from various quarters for a bolder approach, with increased political vision, more vigour, more pace and more immediacy, his arguments were repeated ones.

Given that he is in considerable political difficulty, does he need a new narrative?

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

Sir Keir's problems are not just because governing is hard, but because he and his team have made mistakes, even in the recent past.

Regrets and Risks

The PM told me that he was sorry for saying he was "pleased" to welcome back the Egyptian-British activist Alaa Abd El Fattah to the UK following an backlash when statements he'd made in the past – such as calls for Zionists and police to be killed – surfaced.

Starmer 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 courting evident political dangers as the year progresses. His friendship with the US president entails a new jeopardy after Trump's strikes on Venezuela.

Based on years of interviewing Sir Keir Starmer, a ex- human rights lawyer who was against the war in Iraq, over a long period, the idea he would be comfortable with these events seems implausible.

Policy Stances and Pressures

He asserted he was a "lifelong advocate of international law" but we "simply lack the full picture at the moment".

Some demanded condemn it prior to we spoke. And the administration is expected to face more pressure to give an clear view in Parliament in the near future.

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

The PM disputes he's heading in that direction, but his new firmer plan to integrate further with the European trading bloc – the giant economic European trading zone – will likely elicit howls that he is going back on his promise never to try to overturn the choices that stemmed from Brexit.

A commitment to cosy up to more of the single market will please some on his side of the party, but it is simple material for Reform and the Conservatives to