Who we are

Our people are our only real asset. Their understanding of politics, regulation and communication is what enables us to help our clients meet their objectives. Amongst our team, you will find some of the biggest names in the public policy arena-and happily without the egos to match!

Our team is intentionally diverse: we are truly cross-party, with a range of professional backgrounds in the broad public policy arena.

Richard Sutcliffe-Smith, Managing Partner

Richard founded Communiqué in 1984 after 10 years of working for some of the UK's leading advertising and PR agencies.

He has provided local government and community engagement counsel to many of the UK's leading house-builders and property development companies, together with utility companies, trade bodies, leading brand supermarkets and agencies such as Transport for London and the Homes and Communities Agency.

He has also drawn on his 'sharp end' media relations and marketing experience to create a PR Guide for over 200 worldwide offices of an international industrial detergents company and managed publicity and promotion for a chain of over 300 public houses in and around London for a major UK brewer.
Specialisms: stakeholder engagement; property development & regeneration; house building; planning; local government authorities.

Simon Miller, Managing Partner

Simon joined Green Issues Communications as Managing Director in 2007, having previously been UK Managing Director of APCO for three years. From 2000 to 2004 he was a Director in the Public Affairs and Corporate Policy Team at Hill and Knowlton, where he began his consultancy career in 1990. He was Head of Public Affairs at Railtrack (later Network Rail) from 1996 to 2000 and started his public affairs career in the charity sector as National Youth Officer at the English-Speaking Union.

Simon is a member of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations, the Institute of Directors and a Corporate Fellow of the Industry and Parliament Trust.
Specialisms: media relations; integrated communications; crisis management, stakeholder relations; property & development.

Warwick Smith, Managing Partner

For 18 years Warwick has advised a range of clients on domestic and international legislative, regulatory and public policy issues. Prior to joining College Hill, he was Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of Citigate Public Affairs. Before joining the public affairs industry, Warwick was in government service for 16 years as a policy adviser, ministerial aide, and international negotiator.

Warwick is a past Chairman of the Association of Professional Political Consultants in the UK and is a past member of the Policy Committee of the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Specialisms: competition policy; mergers & acquisitions; pharmaceuticals; transport; gambling; financial services; international institutions.

Wes Himes, Managing Partner

With over fifteen years experience in public affairs, Wes is managing partner of Policy Action which he founded in 1998. He is responsible for advising clients in different sectors ranging from health to financial services and supervises lobbying activities carried out in Brussels by Policy Action as well as spearheading numerous campaigns at national level across the EU Member States. Wes has also worked as the Brussels Representative for the European Policy Forum and as an aide to a member of the European Parliament. He holds a Masters in Business Administration from the Katholieke Universiteit van Leuven, one of Europe's top business schools.

Prior to entering the public affairs industry he worked as Director for the State Development for the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC).
Specialisms: EU and member states policymaking, financial services, health, IT & entertainment and gambling.

Chris Lowe, Partner

Chris has been a senior player in public affairs for 20 years. He set up Precise Public Affairs with Robbie MacDuff in 2002 after being Head of Public Affairs at PricewaterhouseCoopers. Prior to that, he set up and headed Scottish & Newcastle's public affairs department, operating in London, Brussels and Edinburgh. His public affairs career started with IBM, where he also won the Dragon Award - a national award for community programmes.

Chris is a visiting lecturer on public affairs at the Universities of Oxford and Westminster, and is a Director of his local Credit Union in Lambeth.
Specialisms: alcohol, waste and resource management, housing, financial services, gambling, health.

Gabriel Abulafia, Partner

A long-standing Labour activist, Gabriel began his career working in Parliament as assistant to David Blunkett, Alan Milburn and Stephen Byers. From the 1997 General Election until April 2000 he was parliamentary assistant to Karen Buck MP, chair of the London Group of Labour MPs. He then joined Citigate Public Affairs, a Westminster lobbying company, where he worked for a wide range of clients covering financial services, health, engineering, foodservice and transport.

He joined Green Issues Communications in 2003 and set up the company's London office through which he has built up the company’s involvement in major regeneration and development projects.
Specialisms: strategic regeneration projects and media relations.
Language capabilities: Spanish.

James Garland, Partner

James has twelve years experience in the communications sector, having worked for several full service advertising and PR agencies before setting up his own agency to advise clients on media strategy.

James joined Green Issues in 2005 and has given advice to clients on their communications, consultation and public affairs strategies across a range of sectors including house-building, aviation, retail, energy and strategic land. James also has responsibility for business development.
Specialisms: stakeholder engagement, media relations, community consultation, planning.
Language capabilities: Spanish and French.

James Nason, Partner

With fifteen years experience in the public affairs industry, James is responsible for advising clients in sectors ranging from financial services to energy. He has also advised on some of the largest UK M&A deals in recent years: Morrisons Supermarkets/Safeway; Ferrovial/BAA and Iberdrola/Scottish Power. James joined College Hill after being Deputy Managing Director of Citigate's public affairs practice. He has extensive communications and campaigning experience in the UK political arena and beyond.

Prior to entering the public affairs industry he worked for the Conservative Research Department.
Specialisms: financial services, energy, health, water, transport, mergers & acquisitions, Africa.

Kelly Edwards, Partner

Kelly joined Green Issues in 2004 and has been the company's Operations Director since 2005. She is a former General Election candidate, having stood for the Labour Party in Hertsmere in 2005 where she received 11,500 votes. She also contested the London local elections in 2002. Before joining Green Issues Kelly spent six years as a Senior Parliamentary Assistant and Press Officer to several Ministers and MPs at the House of Commons where she also undertook consultancy work on behalf of charity and renewable energy clients.

At Green Issues Kelly runs consultation, communications and political engagement on behalf of one of the country’s largest supermarkets as well as projects in the regeneration and renewable energy sectors. She is a former Local Education Authority School Governor and is also responsible for Green Issues' education projects.

Specialisms: local authority political strategy and communications, community consultation, communications in relation to planning for the retail, renewable energy and education (higher and further education) sectors.

Lucy C. Cronin, Partner

Lucy has been active in public affairs for fourteen years. A partner of Policy Action, Lucy has a proven track record in implementing successful lobbying campaigns at both EU and national level and manages a wide-range of pan-European trade associations across all Policy Action practice areas. A Trinity College Dublin graduate (BA in Modern European Studies), Lucy holds a Masters in International Politics from Université Libre de Bruxelles.

Prior to engaging in the public affairs industry she worked at the Secretariat of the Council of the EU, in the trade and competition practices of the Coudert Brothers Brussels office and for HOTREC, the European Federation of Hotels, Cafés and Restaurants.
Specialisms: EU and member state policymaking, gambling, IT & entertainment, health, urban planning and financial services.
Language capabilities: English, Irish, French, German, Dutch.

Nick Bohane, Partner

Nick Bohane has over 20 years experience in communications and consultation advising developers and clients involved in high impact projects.

Nick leads on some of the Green Issues’ major accounts including the Ministry of Defence, one of the UK’s largest retailers and for projects in the waste management sector. He is currently working on one of the UK’s largest regeneration projects in Leamington Spa.

He joined Green Issues in 2007 after a spell working with BT on a national stakeholder programme. Prior to that he held various senior management positions at Burson-Marsteller in public affairs and corporate communications and was commercial and public affairs director of Cityspace, a transport information company. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society.
Specialisms: Regeneration, public sector, retailing, telecoms and waste managementservices.

Robbie MacDuff, Partner

For 20 years he has advised a range of clients on UK (including devolved administrations) legislative, regulatory and public policy issues. He set up Precise Public Affairs with Chris Lowe in 2002 after running Edinburgh-based Strategy in Scotland (part of Grayling Group) where he was Managing Director and a Director of London-based Westminster Strategy. Prior to that he was a Director of IGA. Before joining the public affairs industry, Robbie worked for seven years as the researcher for a former MP for Bootle and Labour's Front Bench Spokesperson for Environmental Protection.

Robbie is currently the Chair of the Association of Professional Political Consultants (APPC) and in 2007 was elected "UK Consultant of the year" by over 3,000 professionals from across the public affairs industry.
Specialisms: housing; transport; skills & training; creative industries; EU-Russia relations; waste and resource management.

Adam Hosmer, Legal Adviser

Adam joined Policy Action in 2009. Since then he has been working primarily on remote gambling issues. A qualified lawyer in New York, Adam received a Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School and a Bachelor's degrees in Economics and Public Policy Studies from Duke University (North Carolina).

Adam is on secondment from Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP (New York) where he was an associate in the firm's competition department.
Specialisms: remote gambling law, competition law.

Andrew Johnson, Account Manager

Andrew joined Green Issues in October 2006, having previous spent a number of years working as a political assistant to the Conservative Group on Surrey County Council. Prior to that, Andrew was a researcher to Conservative MP, Angela Browning.

Andrew is also a councillor on the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham and served as the Mayor for the 2008-09 municipal year – the youngest civic mayor in the United Kingdom at the time.

Andrew holds a degree in Politics and International Relations and an MA in Diplomacy and International Relations from Lancaster University.
Specialisms: stakeholder engagement and housing policy.

Andrew Lester, Senior Account Manager

Andrew manages Green Issues’ Northern Offices in Manchester and Newcastle upon Tyne. Formerly employed as a Labour Party Political Organiser, his wider experience also includes managing campaigns for The Party throughout the UK on a local, regional and national basis.

Andrew joined Green Issues in 2004 following a stint as the Community Liaison Manager for DisabledGO. He has advised clients on their communications, consultation and public affairs strategies across a range of sectors including house-building, waste management, mineral extraction, student housing, education, elderly care, health provision, regeneration, retail, energy and strategic land. In 2006 he established the company’s office in Newcastle upon Tyne.
Specialisms: political strategy, community assessment, stakeholder engagement, community consultation, planning and media relations.

Ania Swirski, Account Manager

Ania has worked in public affairs for four years. Prior to joining College Hill in January 2007, Ania spent fifteen months at Global Government Relations (GGR), the government relations group of DLA Piper, a global legal services organisation.

Here she assisted a number of major clients including BAA and Tesco, in providing policy analysis. Previously, Ania had been a researcher at University College London's Constitution Unit.
Specialisms: education, health, pharmaceuticals, Poland, transport.
Language capabilities: Polish

Anne Schneider, Senior Account Manager

Anne joined Policy Action in 2005. Since then she has been working on EU policy issues relating to the financial services sector. Anne advises, carries out in-depth research and implements lobbying campaigns for various clients in the financial services industry including cross-border financial groups as well as the European network of the World Council of Credit Unions. Anne holds a degree in Italian Language and Culture from the University for Foreigners of Perugia (Italy) and a degree in Political Science from the University of Munich (Germany) specializing in European studies and European law as well as Russian politics.

Prior to engaging in public affairs, Anne worked in Public Relations and Communications in various European countries.
Specialisms: EU policymaking, financial services, retail financial services and microfinance.
Language capabilities: English, German, Italian, French, Russian.

Chris Magee, Account Manager

Chris started his career in the NLGN think-tank and the charity sector, before spending four years working for an Chris Mole MP as a senior Parliamentary aide. He then moved to the private sector, taking on controversial PR and regeneration projects for Indigo Public Affairs and Quatro Public Relations.

In December 2008, he set up his own company, Hampton Reed, providing a diverse client base with policy and stakeholder engagement services at the local and national level. Chris joined Communiqué in December 2009.
Specialisms: property development & regeneration; energy, waste, local government, health policy, tech policy and stakeholder relations.

Debbie Fowler, Executive Assistant

Debbie joined Communiqué in February 2008 and line-manages the Office Support function in addition to being PA to Richard Sutcliffe-Smith.

Debbie has a wealth of communications experience gained from working in management consultancy, design and for three of the top 10 advertising groups (most recently Ogilvy & Mather) in a marketing research capacity.

Ed Grieve, Account Executive

Ed began his career in the constituency office of Andrew Mitchell MP. He started as an intern at Green Issues in 2005, before becoming a full time consultant in 2006.

Ed's work at Green Issues has included managing a challenging project for Amersham & Wycombe College helping them to gain planning permission for a controversial project in the Green Belt. He is also a key member of the company's development team.
Specialisms: consultation 'outreach'.

Emma Webster, Senior Account Manager

Emma joined Green Issues in February 2008. Since then she has worked on projects for organisations including: Tesco, Ministry of Defence and Waste Recycling Group.

Emma is an elected member on West Berkshire Council and was previously the portfolio holder for Highways and Transport.

Emma graduated with an Honours Degree in Law from the University of Southampton.
Specialisms: defence, renewable energy, waste, transport and retail.

Erika Bugnar, Account Executive

Erika joined the team in September 2007 after having worked as a research assistant for Struan Stevenson, a UK Tory MEP at the European Parliament in Brussels. She was involved in a variety of different project such as policy development and committee work.

She has managed a number of projects for a number of clients, notably Retirement Villages and Tesco. She also holds a BA (Hons) degree in International Relations and Politics from Coventry University.
Specialisms: consultation 'outreach'.
Language capabilities: Swedish, Hungarian, Romanian, Danish, Norwegian.

Harry Hudson, Senior Account Manager

Harry joined Green Issues Communications in April 2001, having spent 10 years with the radioactive waste agency Nirex at Harwell in Oxfordshire. At Nirex he worked on political and public relations up to and beyond the failed public inquiry, including a House of Lords' Select Committee Enquiry and a major Public Consensus Conference. He has wide experience and knowledge of handling sensitive and controversial issues across the waste, incineration, quarrying, retail and housing sectors.

He began work in publishing as Editorial Assistant on Whitaker's Almanack, following which he was Assistant Editor of The Law Society's Gazette. He then joined South Western Electricity where he edited the staff newspaper as well as working on media and community relations and crisis management.

He graduated from Exeter University with a BA in English and American Studies.
Specialisms: stakeholder engagement in waste, energy and housing sectors.

Helen Childs, Account Director & Head of Research

Helen started her career working in the House of Commons for two Labour MPs, David Blunkett and Alan Johnson, for four years as their Parliamentary Assistant. Whilst working in the House, Helen helped Alan Johnson in his fight for compensation for the distant water trawlermen who lost their jobs as a result of the Cod Wars, helping them to secure over £40million. Helen joined Precise Public Affairs in its infancy in 2002.

Helen studied Criminology and Social Policy at Hull University, where she taught literacy and numeracy to Young Offenders in Hull prison and was a volunteer advisor at the Citizen's Advice Bureau.
Specialisms: healthcare, public sector and environment.

Jeremy Rollison, Account Manager

Jeremy joined Policy Action in 2006. Since then he has been working on EU policy issues surrounding the distribution of online content and Internet services, e-Commerce, and online consumer policy. Jeremy serves as the Brussels-based Director of the European Digital Media Association (EDiMA). A graduate from the University of Richmond (US) with a Bachelor's, cum laude, in International Studies, he holds a Masters in Contemporary European Studies from the University of Bath (UK) and l'Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Paris (IEP-Sciences-Po, France).

Prior to engaging in public affairs, Jeremy has gained experience in the telecommunications, new media, and online marketing industries.
Specialisms: EU policymaking, IT & entertainment, e-Commerce, online content distribution, Internet services and consumer policy.
Language capabilities: English, French, Dutch

Katharina Derschewsky, Account Executive

Katharina joined College Public Policy whilst completing her Masters degree in Public Affairs and Lobbying at Brunel. She has a strong international background having studied in Germany, the Netherlands and the UK as well as interning with a think tank in Argentina promoting democratic development across South America. Most recently, she worked in German MEP Hans-Peter Mayer’s European Parliament Office in Brussels & Strasbourg providing research support on a number of different policy issues such as financial services, food & agriculture and health.
Specialisms: food policy and new media.
Language capabilities: English, German (native), Spanish

Kirsty Armstrong, Account Manager

Kirsty joined the team in December 2006 and focuses on political relations and community engagement.

Before joining Communiqué Kirsty advised Jo Swinson MP, the youngest Member of the House with the Shadow Arts and Scotland portfolios. Having worked for a number of Liberal Democrat MPs, both in Parliament and constituency offices, Kirsty is adept at communicating with people from all walks of life. Kirsty has an enthusiasm for engaging communities in the planning and development process. She graduated with a degree in Politics and English from University College Northampton in 2002.
Specialisms: property development & regeneration; grass-roots campaigning and stakeholder relations; local government authorities.

Marco Di Benedetto, Senior Account Manager

Marco joined Policy Action in 2006. Since then he has been working on EU policy issues related to the entertainment, gaming and gambling industries. He serves as EU Policy Adviser for a number of European trade associations on behalf of which he organises lobbying and communication campaigns. Marco consults various national associations in the entertainment and gambling sector on EU policy developments. A graduate in Economics of International Business from London South Bank University Business School, Marco holds a joint Masters Degree in Contemporary European Studies (Politics, Policy and Society) with a minor in Transatlantic Relations from the University of Bath (UK), University of Washington Seattle (US), and the Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (Spain) as well as Professional Certificates in Marketing and New Business Development from the University of California, San Diego (US).

Prior to engaging in public affairs, Marco worked at the Delegation of the European Commission in Washington DC and specialised in EU-US trade relations and as International Press Officer for a major European culture event.
Specialisms: EU and member state policymaking, EU Internal Market, IT and entertainment, gambling policy and consumer policy.
Language capabilities: English, Italian, Spanish, French, German, Dutch, Portuguese

Manuel Espàrrago, Senior Account Manager

Manuel joined Policy Action in 2008. Since then he has been working on EU policy issues relating to the remote gambling and ICT industries. Manuel serves as the Brussels representative of the Remote Gambling Association and advises the association on any related EU policy developments in the field of cross-border remote gambling services. A graduate in Law from the University of La Coruña (Spain), Manuel holds a Masters in European Studies from the French-speaking University of Louvain-la-Neuve (Belgium). Prior to joining PolicyAction, he worked for the European hunting federation, where, as deputy secretary-general, he was in charge of legal and public affairs issues.

Prior to engaging in public affairs, Manuel spent two years at the representation of the Spanish region of Galicia in Brussels and a training period at the European Commission's DG Internal Market.
Specialisms: remote gambling, ICT, EU law, EU legislative procedures.
Language capabilities: English, Spanish, French, Portuguese, German, Italian

Maria Cohn, Account Manager

Maria joined Policy Action in 2009. Since then she has been working on the financial services sector. She has carried out research and in-depth analysis related to financial services for a wide range of clients. A graduate in Labour Relations and Human Resources Management from Universidad de La Rioja (Spain), she holds a second degree in Tourism from the Universidad de Las Palmas (Spain). Maria is completing her Masters degree in International Relations with a minor in European Public Policy and International Political Economy from the University of Kent (UK).

Prior to engaging in public affairs, Maria worked a Foreign Trade Assistant at the Economic and Commercial Office of the Spanish Embassy in Sweden and gained experience in the field of international tenders while working for a Spanish consortium developing projects in Africa.
Specialisms: EU policymaking, financial services, retail financial services and microfinance.
Language capabilities: English, Spanish, German, French

Monica Aldea, Office Manager

Monica joined Policy Action in 2008. Monica is responsible for managing Policy Action's Brussels office. Before joining PolicyAction, she worked as Assistant to the Secretary General of the Federation of the European Sporting Goods Industry (FESI) and as PR tourism delegate for Maxitours (Brussels). During her career she has gained experience in planning, coordinating and executing PR activities, including graphic design of publications, organising special events and promotion campaigns. A graduate in foreign languages from the University of Arts of Galati (Romania), Monica holds a Master of Arts in Tourism Management.

Language capabilities: English, Romanian, French

Patricia Lamas Sànchez, Account Manager

Patricia joined the Policy Action in 2008. Since then she has been working on EU health policies. She serves as the Brussels-based policy advisor for a number of European trade associations, pharmaceutical and medical devices companies, as well as an established European Health Forum on behalf of which she runs lobbying and communication campaigns. Prior to joining PolicyAction, she gained considerable experience working with a number of European associations, companies and non-profit organisations. A graduate in journalism from the Universidad Pontificia de Salamanca, Patricia also holds a degree in International Relations from the Université Libre de Bruxelles.

Prior to engaging in public affairs, Patricia has gained invaluable experience in communication and journalism in Spain, UK and Belgium.
Specialisms: EU policymaking, health policy, consumer policy and EU communications tools.
Language capabilities: English, Spanish, French

Philip Eder, Account Manager

Philip joined Policy Action in 2008. While initially part of the financial services practice area, Philip joined the IT & Entertainment practice area where he mainly works with the Business Software Alliance, and has developed an expertise in legislative issues surrounding IT privacy and security as well as intellectual property rights in the information technology field. Philip completed his Masters degree in American Studies, Political Science and International Law from the University of Munich, specialising in American and British politics and international humanitarian law.

Prior to engaging in public affairs, Philip worked for a financial consultancy in Munich, Germany.
Specialisms: EU policymaking, ICT, privacy and security and IT related intellectual property rights.
Language capabilities: English, German, Italian

Robert Russell-Pavier, Account Manager

Robert joined Precise Public Affairs in January 2007. Since then, he has worked on a range of companies, such as Scottish & Newcastle and CEMEX, as well as organisations like the publically-funded National Consumer Council and the pan-European think-tank, the EU-Russia Centre.

Robert is an experienced political researcher, having previously worked for Labour MPs, Paul Clark and Gareth Thomas, for three and a half years. Whilst working for Gareth Thomas, Robert organised his constituency's 2006 Local Election campaign as well as playing a significant role in the MP's successful re-election campaign for the 2005 General Election. Robert also interned for the United Nations Association, where he helped to organise the Association's 2005 Lobby of Parliament.
Specialisms: data security; digital media; alcohol; training and skills; waste and recycling.

Sarah Phillips, Executive Assistant

Prior to joining College Public Policy, Sarah worked for four years as Researcher to Labour MP Alan Campbell. Sarah has a BA in Government and European Union Studies and a first class Masters Degree in European Union Studies from Newcastle University.

She also has valuable international experience, having spent a year studying politics at Leipzig University and more recently a year working in Canada

Simon Powell, Account Manager

Simon joined Communiqué in 2004. With a previous background in sales and event management, he focuses on community & stakeholder engagement.

With a methodical approach to the organising and running of multi-stage consultations, Simon develops consultation programmes to ensure co-operation and understanding for all participants, both as on-the-day events and as ongoing conversations through a variety of channels, including new media. He has also organised and coordinated highly complex document distributions associated with the submission of planning applications for the first new town of the 21st Century.

Simon has a degree in Business & Marketing from Bournemouth University
Specialisms: stakeholder engagement; house building; planning; local government authorities.

Sophia Wilson, Account Manager

Sophia joined Precise Public Affairs in April 2006, whilst completing her Masters in British Politics at the University of Leeds. During her internship, she also worked in Parliament as a researcher for Fabian Hamilton MP. Prior to this, Sophia obtained a Politics degree from Edinburgh University. While she was completing her first Masters in Political Communication, Sophia became a researcher for a European political communication think-tank based at the University.
Specialisms: housing; tourism; water industry; EU-Russia relations.

Will Scawn, Senior Account Manager

Will has worked on a variety of complex sites, including mixed-use town centre regeneration plans, airport expansions, energy facilities and Green Belt redevelopment proposals. Will's development focus is on London and the Thames Gateway region.

Prior to joining Green Issues, Will worked for Transport for London, a local authority and a market research firm. Outside work, he is an active member of the London Conservative Party.
Specialisms: strategic regeneration projects and innovation in consultation.