Paul Ovenden resigns after leaked Labour messages reveal degrading sexual comments

Downing Street has been rocked by the sudden resignation of one of Sir Keir Starmer’s most senior aides after explicit and degrading remarks about veteran Labour MP Diane Abbott surfaced.

Paul Ovenden, who served as the Prime Minister’s Director of Strategy and earned up to £120,000 a year, quit on Monday after ITV News revealed messages in which he joked about Abbott in sexually explicit terms with Labour colleagues. The exchanges, sent in 2017 when Ovenden was a junior Labour press officer, included graphic references to sex toys and sex acts.

In the leaked conversation, Ovenden boasted that he and others had played a crude version of “snog, marry, avoid”, describing the results as “outrageous” and admitting he “nearly wet” himself laughing. The thread detailed discussions about Abbott in offensive sexual scenarios, with colleagues egging him on in real time.

After being confronted with the revelations, Ovenden acknowledged the comments and resigned. “I am accused of eight years ago as a junior press officer sharing with a female colleague the details of a silly conversation that I was party to with other female staff members,” he said. “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.”

He added: “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.”

A Downing Street spokesperson condemned the messages as “appalling and unacceptable”. They stressed Abbott’s legacy as a trailblazer: “As the first black woman to be elected to Parliament, Diane Abbott is a trailblazer who has faced horrendous abuse throughout her political career. These kinds of comments have no place in our politics.”

The revelations deepen the crisis engulfing Starmer’s government. In recent weeks the Prime Minister has already lost his deputy, Angela Rayner, and Britain’s US ambassador, Lord Mandelson, both forced out in scandal. Now Ovenden’s fall adds fresh turmoil at the heart of No 10.

The offensive messages were sent a year after Labour introduced a pledge and code of conduct requiring members to treat others with “dignity and respect”, specifically banning sexualised language or imagery. At the time, Ovenden was part of Labour’s media team under Jeremy Corbyn.

He later left to work in communications before returning in 2020 as Labour’s Director of Communications under Starmer. After the party’s 2024 election win, he was promoted to Downing Street as one of Starmer’s most trusted strategists. Working closely with Chief of Staff Morgan McSweeney, Ovenden helped shape the Prime Minister’s speeches, policy messages and media strategy by tracking voter behaviour.

Now, that role has been abruptly cut short. His resignation statement emphasised loyalty to Starmer, saying his duty was to “protect the reputation of the Prime Minister and his government.”

Abbott herself has not yet commented on the revelations. But the leaked messages will fuel wider concerns about the culture inside Labour, especially given Abbott’s decades-long record as a target of racist and sexist abuse.

For Starmer, the scandal raises new questions about judgment and discipline in his inner circle. With the government already bruised by controversy and under pressure over Trump’s state visit, losing another senior adviser threatens to erode confidence further.

As the fallout spreads, one thing is clear: Ovenden’s exit, triggered by words typed nearly a decade ago, has dealt a fresh and damaging blow to No 10