During that time, he worked closely with the Mayor to champion London’s key business sectors domestically and internationally and to support London’s recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Before City Hall, Ben worked in senior roles at the Labour Party for over a decade, latterly as Head of Policy Development, where he was responsible for managing Labour's formal policy making process, National Policy Forum and manifesto development process in the run prior to the 2015 General Election.

Ben’s appointment follows a raft of hires into Blakeney’s public affairs team, including: former Labour shadow housing minister, Melanie Onn; former Labour senior policy adviser, Dan Hogan; Hugo Sutherland, who joined from Portland to lead Blakeney’s public affairs practice as its Managing Director; and Theo Bamber, who joined the team from FTI Consulting.

Michael Pooley, Blakeney’s Managing Partner, said: “We are delighted to welcome Ben to Blakeney. His experience in Labour politics, and particularly his understanding of London’s politics, will be invaluable to Blakeney’s clients in a year when we’ll see both a mayoral and a general election.

“Blakeney was listed in PR Week’s top 20 public affairs agencies in the UK in 2023, and we plan to significantly increase the reach, size, and capabilities of the team in 2024 and beyond.”

Ben said: “After two decades working in Labour politics, I’m thrilled to be joining Blakeney. It’s a business built on brilliant people, with great skills and expertise, and I am excited to join them in supporting our clients through this critical time in the political cycle."

Ben’s appointment comes during a period of continued growth for the business. Blakeney has achieved 187% growth in gross profit in the last three years alone. In addition to strategic partnerships which enable its clients to promote and protect their reputation in Europe, the United States, and Asia Pacific, the consultancy plans to create its own footprint outside London within the next 12 months.