Not only has Keir Starmer struck a trade deal with India, the fastest growing economy in the world, but he’s (sort of) got another one with the United States – the first agreed by Donald Trump. At the very same time, the Bank of England has cut interest rates for the second time this year.

In any other political climate, this would all be box office front-page news, a major triumph for the UK government.

And yet. The Prime Minister faces continued noises off from his left in Labour. Rumours are swirling No10 may be forced into a partial climbdown on the cuts to winter fuel payments. The US trade deal is being pilloried for leaving exporters in a worse position than they were on January 1 – even if it’s a bit better than it was on Wednesday morning. Starmer’s poll ratings remain stubbornly grim while Nigel Farage rides high off the back of last week’s sensational local elections.

Cabinet Office Minister Pat McFadden has described the situation this week as “the fight of our lives,” while Starmer responded with an op-ed offering promises of more money for services, shorter NHS waits, and lower immigration. Politically cautious, focused on delivery but perhaps lacking the depth needed to address the party’s mounting challenges. Labour retains a stonking majority in the Commons but still faces whispered questions about what it plans to do with it.

The next milestone for Starmer is expected to be some kind of new deal with the EU later this month. And then all eyes turn to the Spending Review on June 11. The next four weeks will set many of the parameters for politics between now and the next General Election, after which the challenge will be turning promises into reality.

Can Starmer earn some credit for learning from the mistakes of his first months in office and getting some wins, even if slender ones? Or will he continue to be drowned out by louder voices?

(Photo provided by Sky News)