Sun Life sheds lobbying chief and reviews APCO

Sun Life and Provincial Holdings, the UK umbrella group for French

insurance giant AXA, has made its government and community affairs

manager redundant and is deciding whether or not to keep its lobbying

agency, APCO.

After a review of communications, corporate affairs director Stewart

Prosser has decided that government relations are not a core group

function.

Sun Life is the UK’s third largest general insurer, second largest

health insurer and top four life insurer.

As a result, government and community affairs manager Alec Whitfield,

one of three managers within the group PR function who reported to

Prosser, has left the company and will not be replaced. Whitfield has

not announced his next move.

Sun Life retained APCO as its lobbying agency when it bought insurer

Guardian Royal Exchange this year.

APCO has worked for some time with PPP Healthcare, which was itself

acquired by Guardian Royal Exchange in 1998.

Prosser said the company was deciding how much responsibility for

government relations to devolve to its operating companies, such as PPP

Healthcare.

Prosser said it had decided after his review that there was ’no place

for government and community affairs to sit within the corporate affairs

remit as a full time position’.