Starmer Bows to Politics by Making Morgan McSweeney Top Aide

Keir Starmer has endured a rough first three months in power, with his administration overwhelmed by controversies over donations, infighting and mounting gloom about the UK’s public finances. On Sunday, he finally turned to the architect of Labour’s landslide election victory to try to put things right.

The sudden appointment of Morgan McSweeney to replace Sue Gray, who the prime minister had plucked from a senior role in Britain’s bureaucracy to steer his government, was a brutal move that underscored how much the government was already in need of a full reset. People in Labour also see it as Starmer realizing his office needs more political edge — something the premier isn’t particularly known for — after weeks of negative media coverage.