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Efforts to secure the release of Alaa Abd el-Fattah regularly distracted Keir Starmer’s government from concentrating on bread-and-butter domestic political issues, according to one of the PM's inner circle of ex-aides.

Frustration Became a Source of Humour

Paul Ovenden, who stepped down last year as the prime minister’s director of strategy, claimed the case of the imprisoned activist became a “running joke” among those in Whitehall frustrated by the slow pace of change.

“We'd hold long meetings on the key goals of the government, and often they would be railroaded via any other business into conversations of this gentleman,” he stated on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

He continued, “Most of us on the political side of government were largely unaware of it – not closely following it – because it didn’t impact us daily. It truly turned into a sort of a standing joke within government that people would always find a way to bring it back to this conversation.”

Symptomatic of a Broader Issue

Ovenden argued the amount of time spent on freeing Abd el-Fattah was symptomatic of a government that has struggled to stay focused on voters’ core priorities in the face of pressure from “influential” campaign organisations and quasi-independent agencies.

Ovenden’s comments were made during his initial public statement since he stepped down in September, after it was revealed he had sent inappropriate messages about the Labour MP Diane Abbott previously.

Shared Frustrations in Downing Street

But, Ovenden’s political analysis is shared by many in Number 10, including the prime minister, who lamented last month about excessive red tape delaying government action.

Ovenden stated Abd el-Fattah’s case was among a number of areas where the government was sidetracked from its primary goals. He pointed to controversies over compensation for historical injustices and prohibiting cigarettes in outdoor hospitality areas as further examples.

“When the public is getting more and more frustrated, ever more disillusioned with a lack of progress, increasingly tired with side issues, in my opinion, we simply can’t afford to be spending their time on what I consider diversions,” he said.

Advocating for a Radical Shift

In a separate piece, he urges the government to scale back green rules, cut welfare spending and even end the guaranteed pension increase mechanism.

“We don’t have to keep taking money of the wealth-generating sectors of our economy in order to fund inflation-busting pension increases for the wealthy or an unaffordable benefits framework,” he writes. “We don’t have to strangle small businesses at birth with excessive regulation.”

Having been part of a small group of advisers close to the prime minister since his days in the opposition benches, his exit was seen by many as a blow to Starmer, even as his analysis of Whitehall priorities finds sympathy in certain quarters.