Diversions Over Alaa Abd el-Fattah Were a Running Joke, Says Ex-Starmer Adviser
Efforts to secure the release of Alaa Abd el-Fattah frequently diverted the Starmer administration from focusing on bread-and-butter domestic political issues, as stated by one 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, said the case of the British political prisoner became a “running joke” among those in Whitehall exasperated with the lack of progress of change.
“We'd hold extended discussions on the priorities of the government, and often they would be derailed via AOB into discussions of this individual,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
He added, “Most of us on the political team of government were largely unaware of it – not closely following it – because it didn’t impact us daily. It truly turned into a bit of a kind of a standing joke within government that people would invariably find a way to return to this topic.”
Symptomatic of a Broader Issue
Ovenden argued the significant focus 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 “influential” activist groups and quasi-independent agencies.
These remarks were made during his initial public statement since he resigned in September, following revelations he sent offensive texts about the Labour MP Diane Abbott eight years ago.
Shared Frustrations in Downing Street
However, Ovenden’s political analysis is echoed by many in Downing Street, even the prime minister, who complained last month about bureaucratic hurdles slowing government action.
Ovenden said Abd el-Fattah’s case was one of several areas where the government was sidetracked from its primary goals. He cited rows over compensation for historical injustices and prohibiting cigarettes in pub gardens as further examples.
“When the public is getting more and more frustrated, ever more disillusioned with inaction, more and more fed up with side issues, in my opinion, we cannot justify to be spending their time on what I consider distractions,” he said.
Advocating for a Radical Shift
In a separate piece, he calls on the government to scale back green rules, reduce benefits expenditure and even end the guaranteed pension increase mechanism.
“It is not necessary to keep picking the pockets of the wealth-generating sectors of our economy in order to pay for above-inflation pension rises for millionaires or an unaffordable benefits framework,” he writes. “We don’t have to stifle entrepreneurs from the outset with excessive regulation.”
Having been part of a handful of advisers around the prime minister since his days in the opposition benches, his departure was widely regarded as a setback to Starmer, even as his analysis of Whitehall priorities resonates in certain quarters.
