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Efforts to free of the British-Egyptian activist regularly distracted the Starmer administration from focusing on bread-and-butter home affairs, as stated by one of the prime minister’s closest ex-aides.

A 'Running Joke' Within Government

Paul Ovenden, who stepped down last year as the PM's chief of strategy, claimed the case of the British political prisoner evolved into a “recurring punchline” among those in government exasperated with the slow pace of change.

“We'd hold long meetings on the priorities of the government, and frequently 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 were largely unaware of it – not closely following it – because it didn’t impact us daily. It truly turned into a bit of a kind of a standing joke within government that people would invariably find a way to bring it back to this conversation.”

A Sign of Wider Struggles

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

These remarks were made during his first public intervention since he resigned in September, following revelations he sent offensive texts about the Labour MP Diane Abbott eight years ago.

Echoes of PM's Own Concerns

However, Ovenden’s assessment is shared by many in Number 10, even 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 became distracted from its primary goals. He pointed to controversies over reparations to former colonies and prohibiting cigarettes in pub gardens as other instances.

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

Calls for Policy Overhaul

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

“It is not necessary to keep picking the pockets of the wealth-generating sectors of our economy in order to fund inflation-busting pension increases for the wealthy or an unaffordable benefits framework,” he writes. “There is no need to stifle entrepreneurs at birth with excessive regulation.”

As one of a small group of advisers close to the prime minister since his days in opposition, his exit was widely regarded as a setback to Starmer, while his analysis of governmental focus resonates in certain quarters.