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Attempts to secure the release of Alaa Abd el-Fattah regularly distracted the Starmer administration from focusing on bread-and-butter domestic political issues, according to a former member of the prime minister’s closest ex-aides.

Frustration Became a Source of Humour

Paul Ovenden, who stepped down last year as the PM's chief of strategy, claimed the case of the British political prisoner evolved into a “running joke” among those in Whitehall exasperated with the slow pace of change.

“We would be having extended discussions on the key goals of the government, and often they would be railroaded via AOB into discussions of this individual,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

He continued, “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 impact us daily. It actually became a sort of a standing joke within government that people would invariably find a way to return to this conversation.”

A Sign of Wider Struggles

Ovenden said the significant focus dedicated to freeing Abd el-Fattah was symptomatic of a government that has struggled to stay focused on voters’ core priorities in the face of pressure from “influential” activist groups and quasi-independent agencies.

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

Echoes of PM's Own Concerns

But, Ovenden’s assessment is shared by many in Downing Street, even the prime minister, who lamented last month about bureaucratic hurdles slowing government action.

Ovenden stated Abd el-Fattah’s case was among a number of areas where the government was sidetracked from its main objectives. He cited controversies over reparations to former colonies and banning smoking in outdoor hospitality areas as other instances.

“When the public is getting more and more frustrated, ever more disillusioned with a lack of progress, more and more fed up with side issues, in my opinion, we cannot justify to be spending their time on what I consider diversions,” he said.

Calls for Policy Overhaul

In a further article, he urges the government to scale back environmental regulations, reduce benefits expenditure 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 fund inflation-busting pension increases for millionaires or an unsustainable welfare system,” he argues. “We don’t have to stifle small businesses from the outset with regulatory burdens.”

As one of a small group of advisers close to the prime minister since his days in opposition, his departure was seen by many as a setback to Starmer, while his analysis of governmental focus resonates in certain quarters.