Diversions Regarding Alaa Abd el-Fattah Were a Running Joke, Says Ex-Starmer Adviser
Attempts to secure the release of Alaa Abd el-Fattah regularly distracted Keir Starmer’s government from focusing on core domestic political issues, as stated by a former member of the prime minister’s closest former advisers.
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 government frustrated by the lack of progress of change.
“We'd hold extended discussions on the priorities of the government, and frequently they would be railroaded via AOB into discussions of this gentleman,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
He added, “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 on a day-to-day basis. It truly turned into a sort of a running joke within government that people would invariably find a way to bring it back to this topic.”
A Sign of Wider Struggles
Ovenden said the amount of time spent on freeing Abd el-Fattah was symptomatic of a government that has found it difficult to remain concentrated on the public's main concerns in the face of pressure from “influential” campaign organisations and quasi-independent agencies.
Ovenden’s comments were made during his first public intervention since he stepped down in September, after it was revealed he sent inappropriate messages about the Labour MP Diane Abbott eight years ago.
Echoes of PM's Own Concerns
However, Ovenden’s political analysis is echoed by many in Downing Street, even the prime minister, who complained last month about excessive red tape delaying government action.
Ovenden said Abd el-Fattah’s case was one of several areas where the government became distracted from its primary goals. He cited rows over compensation for historical injustices and prohibiting cigarettes in outdoor hospitality areas as further examples.
“When the public is getting increasingly impatient, more and more fed up with a lack of progress, increasingly tired with distraction, 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 calls on the government to roll back environmental regulations, reduce benefits expenditure and even end 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 pay for inflation-busting pension increases for millionaires or an unaffordable benefits framework,” he argues. “There is no need to stifle entrepreneurs at birth with excessive regulation.”
As one of a small group of advisers close to the prime minister since his days in opposition, his exit was widely regarded as a blow to Starmer, while his critique of governmental focus resonates in certain quarters.
