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Efforts to free of Alaa Abd el-Fattah regularly distracted the Starmer administration from focusing on bread-and-butter home affairs, according to one of the PM's inner circle of ex-aides.

Frustration Became a Source of Humour

Paul Ovenden, who stood down last year as the PM's chief of strategy, claimed the case of the imprisoned activist became a “running joke” among those in Whitehall frustrated by the lack of progress of change.

“We would be having extended discussions on the key goals of the government, and frequently they would be derailed via any other business into discussions of this individual,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

He continued, “Most of us on the political side of government weren’t that aware of it – weren’t that tuned into it – because it didn’t impact us daily. It actually became a bit of a kind of a running joke within government that people would invariably find a way to bring it back to this conversation.”

A Sign of Wider Struggles

Ovenden argued the significant focus spent on the activist's case was indicative of a government that has struggled to stay focused on the public's main concerns in the face of pressure from “influential” campaign organisations and arms-length bodies.

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

Echoes of PM's Own Concerns

But, Ovenden’s assessment is shared by many in Downing Street, including the prime minister, who complained last month about excessive red tape delaying government action.

Ovenden stated Abd el-Fattah’s case was one of several areas where the government was sidetracked from its primary goals. He cited controversies over reparations to former colonies and prohibiting cigarettes in pub gardens as further examples.

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

Advocating for a Radical Shift

In a separate piece, he urges the government to roll back environmental regulations, reduce welfare spending and even scrap the triple-lock on pensions.

“It is not necessary to keep picking the pockets of the productive parts of our economy in order to fund inflation-busting pension increases for the wealthy or an unsustainable welfare system,” he argues. “There is no need to stifle entrepreneurs at birth with regulatory burdens.”

As one of a small group of advisers around the prime minister since his days in the opposition benches, his exit was widely regarded as a blow to Starmer, even as his critique of Whitehall priorities resonates in certain quarters.