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Attempts to free of Alaa Abd el-Fattah frequently diverted Keir Starmer’s government from concentrating on bread-and-butter home affairs, as stated by a former member of the PM's inner circle of former advisers.

Frustration Became a Source of Humour

Paul Ovenden, who stepped down last year as the PM's chief of strategy, said the case of the British political prisoner 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 often they would be derailed via any other business into conversations 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 actually became a bit of a kind of a running joke within government that people would invariably find a way to return to this conversation.”

Symptomatic of a Broader Issue

Ovenden said the significant focus spent on the activist's case 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 “well-connected” campaign organisations and arms-length bodies.

These remarks came in his first public intervention since he stepped down in September, following revelations he had sent inappropriate messages about the Labour MP Diane Abbott previously.

Shared Frustrations in Downing Street

However, Ovenden’s assessment is echoed by many in Number 10, including the prime minister, who complained last month about bureaucratic hurdles slowing government action.

Ovenden said Abd el-Fattah’s case was among a number of areas where the government was sidetracked from its main objectives. He cited controversies over compensation for historical injustices and prohibiting cigarettes in pub gardens as other instances.

“At a time when the public is getting more and more frustrated, ever more disillusioned with a lack of progress, increasingly tired with distraction, in my opinion, we cannot justify to be using valuable time on what I consider diversions,” he said.

Advocating for a Radical Shift

In a separate piece, he urges the government to scale back green rules, reduce benefits expenditure and even end the triple-lock on pensions.

“It is not necessary to keep taking money of the wealth-generating sectors of our economy in order to fund above-inflation pension rises for millionaires or an unaffordable benefits framework,” he writes. “There is no need to strangle entrepreneurs from the outset with regulatory burdens.”

Having been part of a small group of advisers close to the prime minister since his days in the opposition benches, his exit was widely regarded as a setback to Starmer, while his critique of governmental focus finds sympathy in certain quarters.