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Efforts to secure the release of the British-Egyptian activist regularly distracted Keir Starmer’s government from focusing on bread-and-butter home affairs, as stated by a former member of the PM's inner circle of former advisers.

Frustration Became a Source of Humour

Paul Ovenden, who stepped down last year as the prime minister’s director of strategy, said the case of the British political prisoner evolved into a “recurring punchline” among those in Whitehall frustrated by the slow pace of change.

“We would be having long meetings on the priorities of the government, and frequently they would be railroaded via any other business into discussions of this gentleman,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme.

He continued, “Most of us on the political team of government were largely unaware of it – not closely following it – because it didn't affect us daily. It actually became a bit of a kind of a running joke within government that people would invariably find a way to bring it back to this topic.”

A Sign of Wider Struggles

Ovenden argued the significant focus dedicated to the activist's case was indicative of a government that has found it difficult to remain concentrated on the public's main concerns in the face of pressure from “influential” campaign organisations and quasi-independent agencies.

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

Shared Frustrations in Downing Street

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

Ovenden said Abd el-Fattah’s case was one of several areas where the government became distracted from its main objectives. He pointed to rows over compensation for historical injustices and prohibiting cigarettes in outdoor hospitality areas as further examples.

“When the public is getting more and more frustrated, more and more fed up with inaction, increasingly tired with side issues, in my opinion, we simply can’t afford to be spending their time on what I consider diversions,” he said.

Advocating for a Radical Shift

In a further article, he calls on the government to roll back green rules, cut welfare spending and even scrap the guaranteed pension increase mechanism.

“We don’t have to keep picking the pockets of the wealth-generating sectors of our economy in order to fund above-inflation pension rises for the wealthy or an unsustainable welfare system,” he writes. “We don’t have to stifle small businesses at birth with regulatory burdens.”

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