If recent events had not gone Sir Keir Starmer’s way, then it is very possible the avid football fan would have witnessed this weeks’ England victory over the Netherlands in a pub in Kentish Town.
As it was, the newly elected Prime Minister celebrated Harry Kane’s equaliser seated alongside his Dutch counterpart Dick Schoof in a side room in Washington DC during the Nato summit, before having his first bilateral talks with US President Joe Biden.
“It’s been a real transition,” Starmer said, speaking on his official plane as he travelled to the stateside gathering. “This time last week I was just checking into a hotel that was more like a bed and breakfast in Carmarthen and about to do the last day of the campaign.
“And here we are now on the way to the Nato summit – so a real transition.”
The Prime Minister has been plunged into a whirlwind round of diplomacy, leaving for Washington just four days after he took office.
The swift contrast between Opposition and Government has been no less jarring for other ministers and their aides – many of whom have also been on the road this week as the new administration seeks to show it is hitting the ground running.
One Labour adviser told i: “The last time we travelled, I had to book all the Ubers myself and hold up a piece of paper briefing my [shadow] minister when they recorded a clip for social media. Now suddenly we have a huge team to do all that sort of thing.”
The PM had at least one familiar face with him in Washington. He took his wife Victoria on the trip, despite her reluctance to be in the public eye – i understands she will not take part in any interviews or express political positions in future, for fear of being dragged into the spotlight.
Lady Starmer is said to have got on well with other spouses, in particular Volodymyr Zelensky’s wife Olena, during the events put on for them in the margins of the summit.
Asked how his family was handling their new life, the Prime Minister said: “Look, it’s a big transition for Vic and even more for the kids. But Vic’s very pleased to be doing it. It’s great to have her here by my side while we go to this summit. And we will take a bit more time with the kids.”
The Starmers will soon move into the flat in 11 Downing Street, which has been occupied by every Prime Minister since Tony Blair – except for Rishi Sunak, who opted to return to the No 10 flat he lived in when he was chancellor.
Starmer revealed that the previous occupants of No 11 had written welcome messages for the new arrivals. “Jeremy Hunt’s children left notes for our children coming into the No 11 flat,” he said.
“I think that was really sweet… because for children this is very impactful. They have been through it. They are slightly different ages but for them to be thoughtful enough to leave a note is very special. Our children were very pleased.”
Eyewitnesses said that other Nato leaders were flocking around the new British Prime Minister during the summit – possibly keen to garner tips on how to secure their own crushing election victories in future. Even Giorgia Meloni, the hard-right Prime Minister of Italy who was close to Rishi Sunak, paid him close attention in Washington.
Those who know Starmer best say they have noticed a marked change in him since he became the most powerful person in Britain.
“Becoming PM has changed Keir,” a Labour insider said. “He seems much more confident now. Because he’s a decisions man and for years he’s not been able to make any decisions, he could only complain about things.”
The Downing Street machine quickly cranked into action the moment Starmer entered No 10 – though some observers suggested that the shift from Sunak to his Labour successor was less jarring than some intra-Conservative transitions, given the two men share a similar demeanour.
An official who has worked in No 10 under four leaders told i: “Each change of PM has been a total upheaval – and the one with the least contrast has been Rishi to Keir.”
There has been some continuity in personnel, as well as in tone. Contrary to some reports, foreign policy expert John Bew – who previously worked for Boris Johnson, Liz Truss and Mr Sunak – remains in No 10 as an advisor to the new government, working on national security and Ukraine policy.
But while there will be little deviation when it comes to security and Ukraine, there have been major upheavals across Whitehall as the new administration seeks to show the country that it is getting down to business from day one.
Finishing touches are being made to the King’s Speech that is expected to include around 30 new pieces of legislation designed to overhaul housing, the railways, green energy and crime.
Bills to renationalise the railways, devolve more decision under the Take Back Control Bill, boost workers’ rights, to introduce the long-awaited Martyn’s Law – aimed a protecting public venues from terrorism – and a Hillsborough law are all expected to feature next week.
i understands that a significant section of the legislative agenda will be taken up by Labour’s transport reforms, which are regarded by the party as another key lever to try and generate growth, alongside boosting housebuilding.
“We are going to be moving very quickly after the King’s Speech, with some major announcements likely to come before recess,” a Whitehall source said.
The historic result last week has been no less disorienting for the hordes of new Labour MPs who were elected on 4 July, with scores of them being forced to hot desk in the older parts of Parliament. “By 4 or 5 o’clock it begins to get very funky in there,” one new member complained.
Another added chirpily: “Some MPs have barely been to London before. I saw one newbie on a tour of Parliament with a bunch of tourists, headphones and all.”
But the mood is far more sombre among Tory MPs, as the party seeks to pick itself up from the wreckage of the general election.
Recriminations are already flying over who was to blame for the party’s disastrous performance, with David Campbell-Bannerman leader of the right-wing grassroots group, the Conservative Democratic Organisation, calling it a “Conservative Chernobyl – a meltdown for the Conservatives”.
While Rishi Sunak has accepted responsibility for the election result, there remains deep frustration over the timing of it, with Kemi Badenoch claiming the decision to call it without consulting the Cabinet as bordering on “unconstitutional”.
But sources were adamant that there was no alternative as Tory MPs had all but stopped coming to Parliament by April.
“At one point we had more than 220 slip requests [when MPs ask to miss votes in Parliament],” an insider said. “The polls just weren’t shifting and around 130,000 people a month were coming off their fixe- rate mortgages on to much higher rates.”
For now, the rival Tory camps are gingerly testing the water for a potential leadership bid, with party bigwigs anxious to avoid weeks and months of bloodletting while a new leader is found.
The Prime Minister has bigger concerns to grapple with, however. A dust up with the unions over public sector pay is looming, pressure is already mounting on the small boats crisis and a backbench rebellion is brewing over the child benefit cap, while further talks with European leaders await at the European Political Community summit.
But first he has a more pressing international date in his diary – the European finals and a chance to watch his England team finally “bring it home”.