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"I will remain in the same office by 2027," the Prime Minister stated, joking that if the conversation was successful, he might welcome the interviewer into his official residence for another talk in the coming year.

For a PM, there's rarely ever time off for prime ministers. Shortly before our chat started, the PM had been on the phone with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and attempting to work out precisely had happened in Venezuela, where his key political chum, US President Donald Trump, had recently attacked and captured its leader, Nicolás Maduro.

Once our lengthy talk, which was considerably lengthier than normal, had ended, Maduro had been indicted in New York.

A Reboot for the New Year

With the year starts, Starmer appears to have had a kind of a refresh. Perhaps even just some downtime with the family at Chequers, the prime minister's official country residence.

That certainly appeared to have resulted in a more positive mood than at the saggy conclusion of 2025, a terrible year politically for him.

Yet, are he and his colleagues being unrealistic if they reckon his standing are poised to improve?

Party Concerns

The uncomfortable reality for the prime minister is that numerous of his colleagues think he's underperforming at his job. Several of them would sooner take a risk and get him out this year.

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

Repeatedly he stated he'd be "evaluated at the next election", arguing nobody would take his electoral mandate from him – even if the best chance of stopping Nigel Farage and Reform UK reaching No 10 might be for Labour to replace its leader.

"This is the fight of our lifetime and I plan to lead us," he declared.

The Spring Test

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

Accurate – up to a point. 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 implying that there were no scenario under which he would walk away, should a his MPs contested his leadership for the job, should those elections be catastrophic for Labour.

Predicting a Turnaround

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

The economic situation would strengthen in the face of rising unemployment, he said, when plans the government 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 added too, with the proviso that it was not a done deal, that a peace agreement in Ukraine felt closer now than at any time since Russia's comprehensive invasion.
• He revealed for the first occasion that Western partners were now talking about how to combine US and European forces to ensure security for Ukraine – to protect a possible peace.

His big message is that this year the country will "turn the corner".

Political Challenges

The prime minister may have spoken with greater vigour than I've seen from him for a while – calmer, perhaps, with a longer slot to talk.

However, in spite of encountering demands from within his own party for a more decisive approach, with increased political direction, more urgency, more pace and more immediacy, his points were well-known ones.

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

No government, and especially not one that has been unpopular for many months, gets everything its as desired.

Sir Keir's problems are not just because government is difficult, but because he and his colleagues have made mistakes, even in the last few weeks.

Regrets and Risks

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

Starmer attributed it to "the system" for not catching what the activist had said before – a fancier way of saying not my fault.

And he is inviting obvious political perils as the year unfolds. His alliance with the US president takes on a new complication after Trump's intervention on Venezuela.

Having interviewed Sir Keir Starmer, a former human rights lawyer who was against the war in Iraq, over his career, the idea he would be content with these events seems far-fetched.

Policy Stances and Pressures

He asserted he was a "career-long proponent of international law" but the public "simply do not have the full picture at the moment".

Some demanded denounce it prior to we spoke. And the government is likely to face more pressure to give an explicit view in Parliament in the coming days.

There has also always been growing pressure in the Labour party to undo or remake some of the consequences of Brexit.

Sir Keir disputes he's doing that, but his new specific commitment to move closer with the European trading bloc – the huge economic European trading zone – will probably trigger accusations that he is going back 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 easy fodder for Reform and the Conservatives to