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Efforts to free of Alaa Abd el-Fattah frequently diverted the Starmer administration from focusing on bread-and-butter home affairs, according to one of the PM's inner circle of former advisers.

Frustration Became a Source of Humour

Paul Ovenden, who stood down last year as the prime minister’s director of strategy, claimed the case of the imprisoned activist evolved into a “recurring punchline” 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 often they would be derailed via AOB into discussions of this gentleman,” he stated on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

He added, “The majority 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 running joke within government that people would always find a way to bring it back to this topic.”

Symptomatic of a Broader Issue

Ovenden said the amount of time spent on 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 “well-connected” activist groups and quasi-independent agencies.

These remarks came in his initial public statement since he resigned in September, after it was revealed he sent offensive texts about the Labour MP Diane Abbott previously.

Echoes of PM's Own Concerns

However, Ovenden’s political analysis is echoed by many in Number 10, even the prime minister, who complained last month about bureaucratic hurdles delaying government action.

Ovenden said Abd el-Fattah’s case was one of several areas where the government was sidetracked from its main objectives. He pointed to rows over reparations to former colonies and banning smoking in pub gardens as further examples.

“At a time when the public is getting increasingly impatient, more and more fed up with inaction, more and more fed up with distraction, 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 roll back environmental regulations, cut welfare spending 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 inflation-busting pension increases for millionaires or an unsustainable welfare system,” he argues. “There is no need to strangle small businesses from the outset with excessive regulation.”

As one of a handful 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 analysis of governmental focus finds sympathy in certain quarters.