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Efforts to secure the release of the British-Egyptian activist frequently diverted the Starmer administration from focusing on bread-and-butter home affairs, as stated by 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 prime minister’s director of strategy, claimed the case of the British political prisoner became a “recurring punchline” among those in Whitehall exasperated with the slow pace of change.

“We'd hold extended discussions on the key goals of the government, and often they would be railroaded via any other business 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 – not closely following it – because it didn't affect us on a day-to-day basis. It actually became a sort of a standing joke within government that people would invariably find a way to return to this topic.”

Symptomatic of a Broader Issue

Ovenden argued the amount of time spent on 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 “well-connected” campaign organisations and quasi-independent agencies.

Ovenden’s comments came in his initial public statement since he stepped down in September, after it was revealed he sent inappropriate messages about the Labour MP Diane Abbott eight years ago.

Shared Frustrations in Downing Street

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

Ovenden stated Abd el-Fattah’s case was among a number of areas where the government became distracted from its primary goals. He pointed to 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 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 calls on the government to scale back environmental regulations, reduce welfare spending and even end 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 the wealthy or an unaffordable benefits framework,” he writes. “We don’t have to strangle small businesses from the outset with regulatory burdens.”

Having been part of a handful of advisers around the prime minister since his days in opposition, his exit was seen by many as a blow to Starmer, while his critique of Whitehall priorities resonates in certain quarters.