Until this month, Leftly was press secretary to Liberal Democrats leader Vince Cable and will join Powerscourt’s issues management and special situations team.
His previous roles include deputy political editor at The Independent on Sunday and associate business editor across The Independent and Evening Standard titles. Leftly has also covered British politics for Time magazine.
The agency has also appointed Victoria Ryzhykh as a consultant from rival Instinctif. She has previously worked as a debt capital markets analyst at investment bank Mizuho International.
The pair will assist Powerscourt’s special situations practice – led by partner Conal Walsh – which focuses on contentious assignments, including litigation support, contested capital markets situations and issues-based campaigning.
Other members of the team include director Giles Read, consultant Isabelle Saber and analyst Blair Campbell.
Powerscourt recently launched a full-service investor relations practice for publicly-listed clients. The firm has offices in London and Dublin.