🔗 Share this article

Efforts to secure the release of the British-Egyptian activist frequently diverted the Starmer administration from concentrating on bread-and-butter domestic political issues, as stated by a former member of the prime minister’s closest 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 British political prisoner evolved into a “running joke” among those in government frustrated by the lack of progress of change.

“We'd hold extended discussions on the priorities of the government, and often they would be railroaded via any other business into discussions of this individual,” he stated on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

He continued, “The majority on the political team of government weren’t that aware of it – weren’t that tuned into it – because it didn't affect us on a day-to-day basis. It truly turned into a bit of a kind of a running joke within government that people would always find a way to return to this conversation.”

A Sign of Wider Struggles

Ovenden argued the amount of time dedicated to the activist's case was indicative of a government that has struggled to stay focused on voters’ core priorities in the face of pressure from “influential” activist groups and arms-length bodies.

These remarks came in his first public intervention since he resigned in September, following revelations he had sent offensive texts about the Labour MP Diane Abbott previously.

Echoes of PM's Own Concerns

But, Ovenden’s assessment is echoed by many in Number 10, even the prime minister, who lamented last month about bureaucratic hurdles delaying government action.

Ovenden stated Abd el-Fattah’s case was among a number of areas where the government became distracted from its primary goals. He cited rows over compensation for historical injustices and banning smoking in outdoor hospitality areas as further examples.

“At a time when the public is getting increasingly impatient, ever more disillusioned with a lack of progress, increasingly tired with side issues, in my opinion, we cannot justify to be spending their time on what I consider diversions,” he said.

Advocating for a Radical Shift

In a separate piece, he calls on the government to scale back green rules, reduce welfare spending and even scrap the guaranteed pension increase mechanism.

“We don’t have to keep taking money of the wealth-generating sectors of our economy in order to pay for above-inflation pension rises for millionaires or an unsustainable welfare system,” he argues. “There is no need to strangle small businesses from the outset with regulatory burdens.”

Having been part of a handful of advisers around the prime minister since his days in opposition, his exit was widely regarded as a blow to Starmer, while his critique of Whitehall priorities finds sympathy in certain quarters.