Summary
Paul Ovenden, an aide to UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, resigned after old explicit text messages about Member of Parliament Diane Abbott became public. The messages were sent eight years ago and have been labeled inappropriate by the Prime Minister's spokesperson.
Key Facts
- Paul Ovenden worked as a senior aide to Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
- Ovenden resigned after explicit text messages about MP Diane Abbott were revealed.
- The messages were reported by the Daily Mail and were from an online conversation eight years ago.
- Diane Abbott is the first black woman elected to the UK Parliament and has faced significant abuse in her career.
- Ovenden explained that the messages were part of an old conversation with colleagues and apologized for their impact.
- At the time of the messages, Ovenden was a junior press officer for the Labour Party.
- Abbott has been the MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington since 1987 but was recently suspended from the Labour Party.
- Ovenden stated he resigned to avoid distracting from the government's work and to maintain the Prime Minister's reputation.
