Public First

This article is part of the Lobbying Portal, a sunlight project from Spinwatch.

Public First is a lobbying firm founded in 2016 by ex-government special adviser James Frayne, a lobbyist who has worked for UK environment secretary Michael Gove while he was at the UK Department for Education; in think tanks; and in commercial lobbying agencies.

Public First is focused on 'helping organisations change public policy and improve their reputations' - in other words, persuading the public to support the interests of its corporate clients.

Frayne has a reputation for being one of the best of the current crop of Tory-leaning media strategists. Among critics, he is known for his promotion of deceptive astroturf campaigns for business interests. He is a former director policy and strategy at the Policy Exchange, a leading right-wing think tank.

People

According to Public First's website 'our staff have been recruited from the highest levels of Government, the media, think tanks, campaigns, Parliament and agencies. They all recognise the power of the public in creating and shaping public policy.'

• James Frayne
• Rachel Wolf
• Jennifer Powers, former managing director until 2017 of Westbourne Communications, whose clients included fracking firm Cuadrilla
• Natascha Engel, former Labour MP and UK fracking tsar from October 2018- April 2019

Contact, Resources and Notes

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