SIR KEIR Starmer has lost one of his most senior advisers over historic comments about Diane Abbott.
Paul Ovenden today left his job as No10 director of strategy after private messages from 2017 were leaked.
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Allies believe he was the subject of a political hit job by internal critics of the PM’s chief of staff Morgan McSweeney, with whom Mr Ovenden was close.
The messages revealed Oveden, then in his 20s, taking part in a group chat with two female colleagues discussing lurid acts involving the veteran political figure Ms Abbott.
Leaving the Number 10 role will be a new headache for the PM who has lost his deputy Angela Rayner and Washington DC ambassador Peter Mandelson in recent days.
Ovenden is seen as being critical in getting Labour re-elected after being out of office for 14 years alongside Mr McSweeney.
One senior government insider told The Sun: “Paul is one of the good guys and the finest political mind in the country.
The Labour landslide was in no small part down to his strategy and work ethic, and the damage to the project will be immense.”
He was also seen as playing a crunch role in writing the PM’s speeches which will cause issues ahead of the annual Labour conference in just two weeks time.
He played a key role in Number 10 and before that a vital election role taking the fight to the Tories by heading up the attack and rebuttal unit.
His departure emerged after Ovenden had already told allies that he was leaving the Downing Street position this month.
But since the revelation he will leave his position with immediate effect.
Mr Ovenden said: “Before summer, I had announced to some of my colleagues my intention to leave government.
“Though the messages long pre-date my current employment and relationship with the prime minister, I’ve brought forward my resignation to avoid distracting from the vital work this government is doing to positively change people’s lives.
“As an adviser, my duty is to protect the reputation of the prime minister and his government.
“While it is chilling that a private conversation from nearly a decade ago can do this sort of damage, I am also truly, deeply sorry for it and the hurt it will cause.”
