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Attempts to secure the release of Alaa Abd el-Fattah frequently diverted the Starmer administration from concentrating on core home affairs, according to a former member of the prime minister’s closest former advisers.

A 'Running Joke' Within Government

Paul Ovenden, who stood down last year as the prime minister’s director of strategy, said the case of the British political prisoner evolved into a “running joke” among those in government exasperated with the slow pace of change.

“We would be having long meetings 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, “The majority on the political team of government weren’t that aware of it – not closely following it – because it didn't affect us on a day-to-day basis. It truly turned into a bit of a kind of a running joke within government that people would invariably find a way to bring it back to this conversation.”

Symptomatic of a Broader Issue

Ovenden said the amount of time dedicated to freeing Abd el-Fattah was symptomatic of a government that has struggled to remain concentrated on the public's main concerns in the face of pressure from “influential” activist groups and arms-length bodies.

Ovenden’s comments came in his first public intervention since he resigned in September, following revelations he sent inappropriate messages about the Labour MP Diane Abbott eight years ago.

Echoes of PM's Own Concerns

But, Ovenden’s assessment is shared by many in Downing Street, including the prime minister, who lamented 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 became distracted from its main objectives. He cited controversies over compensation for historical injustices and prohibiting cigarettes in outdoor hospitality areas as other instances.

“At a time when the public is getting increasingly impatient, ever more disillusioned with a lack of progress, increasingly tired with distraction, in my opinion, we simply can’t afford to be spending their time on what I consider distractions,” he said.

Calls for Policy Overhaul

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

“We don’t have to keep picking the pockets of the productive parts of our economy in order to fund inflation-busting pension increases for the wealthy or an unaffordable benefits framework,” he argues. “We don’t have to stifle entrepreneurs from the outset with regulatory burdens.”

As one of a handful of advisers around the prime minister since his days in the opposition benches, his exit was seen by many as a blow to Starmer, while his analysis of governmental focus resonates in certain quarters.