London, Aug 29: Former Labour Party spokesman David Hill will succeed Alastair Campbell as British Prime Minister Tony Blair's communications adviser, Blair's office said today. "He will operate within a new structure following changes the Prime Minister has decided to make to the communications operation and the centre of government," said a Downing Street spokeswoman.
"Details will be announced later next week," she added.
Campbell -- one of Blair's closest and most powerful aides -- announced his resignation Friday, 10 after testifying before a judicial inquiry that he had not embellished a government dossier on Iraq to bolster the case for war. Hill, 55, steered the Labour Party's press office from 1991 to 1998, the period that saw the party abandon its traditional socialism and then win election victory under Blair in 1997.
He went on to work in the private sector, joining a PR outfit called good relations as a director, but returned briefly to active politics in 2001 to help Blair and Labour win re-election.
He has been described as combative, blunt and rugged and is viewed as a fierce Labour loyalist who can be trusted by Blair and cabinet ministers. His partner Hilary Coffman already works in the Downing Street press office as a special adviser. Campbell's partner Fiona Millar is an assistant to Blair's lawyer wife Cherie Blair. Bureau Report