Diversions Over Alaa Abd el-Fattah Became a Running Joke, States Ex-Starmer Adviser

Attempts to free of Alaa Abd el-Fattah regularly distracted Keir Starmer’s government from focusing on core domestic political issues, according to one of the prime minister’s closest former advisers.

A 'Running Joke' Within Government

Paul Ovenden, who stood down last year as the prime minister’s director of strategy, claimed the case of the British political prisoner became a “recurring punchline” among those in Whitehall exasperated with the slow pace of change.

“We would be having long meetings on the key goals of the government, and frequently they would be derailed via AOB into conversations of this gentleman,” he stated on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

He added, “The majority on the political side of government were largely unaware of it – not closely following it – because it didn't affect us daily. It actually became a sort of a running 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 found it difficult to remain concentrated on voters’ core priorities in the face of pressure from “influential” campaign organisations and quasi-independent agencies.

These remarks came in his first public intervention since he stepped down in September, following revelations he sent inappropriate messages about the Labour MP Diane Abbott eight years ago.

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 slowing 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 controversies over compensation for historical injustices and prohibiting cigarettes in outdoor hospitality areas as further examples.

“At a time 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 cannot justify to be using valuable time on what I consider diversions,” he said.

Advocating for a Radical Shift

In a separate piece, he calls on the government to roll back environmental regulations, reduce benefits expenditure and even scrap the triple-lock on pensions.

“We don’t have to keep picking the pockets of the wealth-generating sectors of our economy in order to fund inflation-busting pension increases for millionaires or an unaffordable benefits framework,” he writes. “There is no need to strangle small businesses from the outset with excessive regulation.”

Having been part of a handful of advisers close to the prime minister since his days in the opposition benches, his departure was seen by many as a setback to Starmer, even as his analysis of Whitehall priorities resonates in certain quarters.