Distractions Regarding Abd el-Fattah Were a Recurring Gag, States Former Starmer Adviser
Efforts to free of the British-Egyptian activist regularly distracted the Starmer administration from concentrating on bread-and-butter home affairs, according to one of the PM's inner circle of former advisers.
A 'Running Joke' Within Government
Paul Ovenden, who stood down last year as the prime minister’s director of strategy, claimed the case of the British political prisoner evolved into a “running joke” among those in Whitehall exasperated with the lack of progress of change.
“We'd hold long meetings on the priorities of the government, and often they would be railroaded via AOB into conversations of this gentleman,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
He added, “Most of us on the political team of government weren’t that aware of it – weren’t that tuned into it – because it didn't affect us daily. It truly turned into a bit of a kind of a standing joke within government that people would always find a way to bring it back to this topic.”
A Sign of Wider Struggles
Ovenden said the amount of time dedicated to the activist's case was symptomatic of a government that has found it difficult to remain concentrated on voters’ core priorities in the face of pressure from “influential” activist groups and quasi-independent agencies.
Ovenden’s comments came in his initial public statement since he stepped down in September, after it was revealed he had sent inappropriate messages 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, including the prime minister, who lamented last month about bureaucratic hurdles slowing 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 other instances.
“At a time when the public is getting more and more frustrated, ever more disillusioned with inaction, increasingly tired with side issues, 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 separate piece, he urges the government to roll back environmental regulations, cut benefits expenditure and even end the guaranteed pension increase mechanism.
“It is not necessary to keep taking money of the productive parts of our economy in order to pay for above-inflation pension rises for the wealthy or an unaffordable benefits framework,” he argues. “We don’t have to strangle small businesses at birth 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 widely regarded as a setback to Starmer, even as his critique of governmental focus finds sympathy in certain quarters.
