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Attempts to secure the release of Alaa Abd el-Fattah regularly distracted the Starmer administration from concentrating on bread-and-butter 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, said the case of the British political prisoner evolved into a “running joke” among those in Whitehall frustrated by the lack of progress of change.

“We'd hold long meetings on the priorities 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 added, “Most of us on the political side of government weren’t that aware of it – not closely following it – because it didn’t impact us daily. It actually became a bit of a kind of a standing joke within government that people would invariably find a way to bring it back to this topic.”

Symptomatic of a Broader Issue

Ovenden argued the amount of time spent on the activist's case was symptomatic of a government that has struggled to stay focused on voters’ core priorities in the face of pressure from “well-connected” campaign organisations and quasi-independent agencies.

Ovenden’s comments came in his initial public statement since he resigned in September, following revelations he sent inappropriate messages about the Labour MP Diane Abbott eight years ago.

Shared Frustrations in Downing Street

But, Ovenden’s assessment is shared by many in Downing Street, including the prime minister, who lamented last month about bureaucratic hurdles delaying government action.

Ovenden said Abd el-Fattah’s case was among a number of areas where the government became distracted from its primary goals. He pointed to controversies over reparations to former colonies and banning smoking in pub gardens as further examples.

“When the public is getting increasingly impatient, more and more fed up with a lack of progress, more and more fed up with distraction, 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 further article, he urges the government to scale back green rules, cut benefits expenditure and even scrap the triple-lock on pensions.

“We don’t have to keep taking money of the wealth-generating sectors of our economy in order to pay for inflation-busting pension increases for the wealthy 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 small group of advisers close to the prime minister since his days in opposition, his exit was seen by many as a blow to Starmer, even as his critique of governmental focus finds sympathy in certain quarters.