LONDON — Instinctif Partners has appointed Tom Harris, former Labour shadow minister for the environment and political columnist, as a senior advisor.

Over his 14 years in parliament, Harris served in the Labour government as railways minister under prime ministers Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. After that, in opposition, he was Labour’s shadow minister for the department of environment and rural affairs until 2013.

Harris has since worked as a public affairs advisor and writes a political column for the Daily Telegraph. He also serves as a non-executive director for the HS2 high-speed railway and as an advisor to the Scotland Office for the Conservative party, and was a member of the Expert Challenge Panel for the UK government’s recent Williams Rail Review.

In his role at Instinctif, Harris will be working alongside existing senior adviser David Gauke, a former justice secretary, to provide clients with political advisory services as part of Instinctif’s strategic communications offer.

Specifically, he will work in Instinctif’s ‘Navigating Labour’ hub, which works with clients across multiple sectors to understand the Labour party’s policy direction and begin pro-active engagement as the party seeks business views on policy, in the run up to the next general election.

Instinctif Partners’ managing director for UK & Ireland Moray Macdonald, who joined the firm last year after 18 years at Weber Shandwick, said: “Tom brings renowned political experience at a crucial time as clients increasingly wake up to the real prospect of Labour becoming the next government in the next 18 months.

"With the Labour party keen to build partnerships with business, clients have an opportunity to engage on future policy areas. Tom is brilliantly placed to work with clients to understand the direction and thinking of the Labour party and help to navigate through key policy areas such as the environment and transport.”

Harris added: “This is an incredibly exciting time to be joining the Instinctif team as the count down to the next election ramps up and the business community looks for strategic advice on the direction of a future Labour government. I look forward to helping to support Instinctif’s Navigating Labour proposition over the coming months.”