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Efforts to secure the release of Alaa Abd el-Fattah regularly distracted the Starmer administration from concentrating on bread-and-butter home affairs, as stated by one 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 imprisoned activist evolved into a “recurring punchline” among those in Whitehall frustrated by the lack of progress of change.

“We would be having long meetings 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 – 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 indicative of a government that has struggled to stay focused on the public's main concerns in the face of pressure from “well-connected” activist groups and arms-length bodies.

Ovenden’s comments were made during his first public intervention since he resigned in September, following revelations he had sent offensive texts about the Labour MP Diane Abbott previously.

Echoes of PM's Own Concerns

However, Ovenden’s political analysis is echoed by many in Number 10, even the prime minister, who complained last month about excessive red tape delaying government action.

Ovenden said Abd el-Fattah’s case was among a number of areas where the government was sidetracked from its primary goals. He pointed to controversies over compensation for historical injustices and banning smoking in outdoor hospitality areas as further examples.

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

Calls for Policy Overhaul

In a separate piece, he calls on the government to scale back green rules, reduce benefits expenditure and even scrap the guaranteed pension increase mechanism.

“We don’t have to keep taking money of the wealth-generating sectors of our economy in order to pay for inflation-busting pension increases for the wealthy or an unsustainable welfare system,” he writes. “There is no need to stifle small businesses at birth with regulatory burdens.”

As one of a handful 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 Whitehall priorities finds sympathy in certain quarters.