Hugh Bennett

Hugh is a senior public affairs and policy expert with deep experience at the heart of the British Government. He is based in Rud Pedersen's London office, working with clients across international markets.

Prior to joining Rud Pedersen, Hugh served as Senior Special Adviser to the Prime Minister at 10 Downing Street, where he was responsible for a range of policy areas including Technology, Digital and wider Business Regulation, and key legislation including the Online Safety Act and the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Bill. Hugh was involved in coordinating regulatory reform efforts across UK Government departments, alongside direct engagement with industry and representative bodies on regulatory issues. He was a senior member of the UK's negotiating team which secured the Trade and Cooperation Agreement with the European Union in 2020, whilst also helping to oversee the cross-Government programme to prepare business and government for the Brexit transition.

At the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), Hugh served as Special Adviser to the Foreign Secretary jointly with his role in 10 Downing Street, and oversaw policy on the EU and Northern Ireland, following previous roles at the Cabinet Office as Special Adviser to the Minister for Europe and Special Adviser to the Leader of the House of Commons, where he worked on the scrutiny and delivery of the Government’s legislative agenda and managing the relationship between Parliament and Government.

Hugh was previously News Editor at the influential Westminster news website, Guido Fawkes, and Deputy Editor at BrexitCentral. He is a regular political commentator on Sky News and other national media, while also working closely with UK economic think tanks including the Centre for Policy Studies and the Institute of Economic Affairs.