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Efforts to free of Alaa Abd el-Fattah frequently diverted the Starmer administration from concentrating on bread-and-butter domestic political issues, according to one of the PM's inner circle of former advisers.

A 'Running Joke' Within Government

Paul Ovenden, who stepped down last year as the prime minister’s director of strategy, said the case of the imprisoned activist became a “running joke” among those in Whitehall exasperated with the lack of progress of change.

“We'd hold extended discussions on the priorities of the government, and often they would be railroaded via AOB into conversations 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 affect us daily. It actually became a sort of a running joke within government that people would invariably find a way to return to this topic.”

A Sign of Wider Struggles

Ovenden said the amount of time spent on the activist's case was indicative of a government that has found it difficult to stay focused on the public's main concerns in the face of pressure from “well-connected” activist groups and quasi-independent agencies.

Ovenden’s comments came in his first public intervention since he stepped down in September, following revelations he had sent offensive texts about the Labour MP Diane Abbott eight years ago.

Shared Frustrations in Downing Street

But, Ovenden’s political analysis is echoed by many in Downing Street, including the prime minister, who lamented last month about excessive red tape slowing government action.

Ovenden said Abd el-Fattah’s case was one of several areas where the government was sidetracked from its main objectives. He pointed to rows over reparations to former colonies and prohibiting cigarettes in pub gardens as further examples.

“At a time when the public is getting increasingly impatient, more and more fed up with inaction, more and more fed up with distraction, in my opinion, we cannot justify to be using valuable time on what I consider distractions,” he said.

Advocating for a Radical Shift

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

“It is not necessary to keep taking money of the wealth-generating sectors of our economy in order to pay for inflation-busting pension increases for millionaires or an unaffordable benefits framework,” he argues. “There is no need to strangle small businesses at birth with excessive regulation.”

As one of a handful of advisers around the prime minister since his days in the opposition benches, his departure was seen by many as a blow to Starmer, even as his critique of Whitehall priorities finds sympathy in certain quarters.