Starmer Aide Paul Ovenden Quits Over Abbott Scandal

Starmer Aide Paul Ovenden Quits

In a new setback for Sir Keir Starmer's government, one of his closest aides has resigned after old, sexually explicit comments about veteran Labour MP Diane Abbott came to light. Paul Ovenden, who served as No 10's director of strategy, stepped down after a 2017 email exchange resurfaced, revealing details of a crude "shag, marry, kill" game he overheard involving two women talking about Ms. Abbott.

Ovenden, a key ally to the Prime Minister and his chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, had been with Labour during Jeremy Corbyn's leadership as a press officer. He left politics briefly for a communications consultancy role before returning in 2020. The messages, sent via the party's internal system to a former colleague who's since left politics, recounted the explicit conversation without Ovenden directly participating in the lewd remarks.

This resignation marks the third high-profile departure from Starmer's team in recent weeks. It follows the dismissal of Lord Mandelson over his connections to Jeffrey Epstein and Angela Rayner's exit as Deputy Prime Minister amid a stamp duty underpayment scandal at her Hove flat. Earlier this month, Starmer announced a government reset, including a Downing Street reshuffle that brought in Darren Jones as chief secretary and saw communications director James Lyons leave.

In his statement to ITV News, Ovenden described the incident as "a silly conversation that I was party to with other female staff members" from eight years ago. He emphasized that he had already planned to leave the government before summer but sped up his departure to avoid distracting from the administration's work. "As an adviser, my duty is to protect the reputation of the Prime Minister and his Government," he said, expressing deep regret for any hurt caused by the historic messages.

Reactions have been quick and sharp. Conservative deputy chairman Matt Vickers criticized the situation, saying, "Day by day, scandal by scandal. Keir Starmer’s Labour Government is imploding." Inside Labour, there's growing frustration over how these issues are being managed, especially amid ongoing party tensions.

Critics on the left have been vocal. Zarah Sultana, a suspended former Labour MP now aligned with Corbyn, called out the "macho boys’ club" around Starmer, labeling the comments as "vile, misogynistic." Anti-racism campaigner Mish Rahman, a former NEC member, described them as "vile and grotesque," connecting them to broader issues of racism and sexism targeting women of color on the party's left. Rahman noted he had been aware of the messages before the election and had mentioned them to the BBC.

Despite the backlash, some government insiders defended Ovenden, praising him as "one of the best minds of a generation" and a supportive colleague who helped navigate tough times. One source questioned whether Starmer should have accepted the resignation, arguing the messages were outdated and merely relayed an overheard chat, and that his loss would hurt the team's efforts to deliver for ordinary people.

This episode occurs against a backdrop of Ms. Abbott's turbulent history under Starmer. As shadow home secretary under Corbyn, she faced two suspensions—most recently over Radio 4 comments distinguishing between types of racism, where she suggested prejudice against Black people is more visible than against Jews or Travellers. Abbott has accused the leadership of wanting her out, highlighting deep divisions within Labour.

As Starmer's government faces these early challenges, the focus remains on whether these departures indicate deeper instability or just growing pains in a new era of power. For now, the Prime Minister's team is under heavy scrutiny, with calls for greater accountability coming from all sides.