Distractions Regarding Abd el-Fattah Became a Recurring Gag, Says Ex-Starmer Adviser
Efforts to secure the release of the British-Egyptian activist regularly distracted the Starmer administration from concentrating on core home affairs, according to one of the prime minister’s closest 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 British political prisoner evolved into a “recurring punchline” among those in Whitehall exasperated with the lack of progress of change.
“We would be having long meetings on the priorities of the government, and frequently they would be derailed via any other business into discussions of this gentleman,” he stated on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.
He added, “Most of us on the political side of government weren’t that aware of it – not closely following it – because it didn't affect 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.”
A Sign of Wider Struggles
Ovenden said the amount of time dedicated to freeing Abd el-Fattah was indicative 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 arms-length bodies.
These remarks were made during his initial public statement since he resigned in September, following revelations he had sent inappropriate messages about the Labour MP Diane Abbott eight years ago.
Shared Frustrations in Downing Street
But, Ovenden’s assessment is echoed by many in Downing Street, 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 became distracted from its main objectives. He cited rows over reparations to former colonies and prohibiting cigarettes in outdoor hospitality areas as further examples.
“When the public is getting increasingly impatient, more and more fed up with inaction, increasingly tired with distraction, in my opinion, we cannot justify to be spending their time on what I consider distractions,” he said.
Calls for Policy Overhaul
In a further article, he calls on the government to scale back green rules, reduce benefits expenditure and even scrap the triple-lock on pensions.
“It is not necessary to keep taking money of the productive parts of our economy in order to fund above-inflation pension rises for millionaires or an unaffordable benefits framework,” he writes. “We don’t have to stifle small businesses from the outset with regulatory burdens.”
Having been part of a handful of advisers around the prime minister since his days in the opposition benches, his exit was widely regarded as a setback to Starmer, even as his analysis of Whitehall priorities finds sympathy in certain quarters.