Harper's former chief of staff signs on with PR firm

OTTAWA - The former chief of staff to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, has been hired as senior counsellor at public relations firm Hill and Knowlton.

Ian Brodie will work with clients across Canada on government relations.

Brodie left his post with Harper this past summer, saying he had had enough of the 24-hour-a-day, 365-days-a-year job.

There had been speculation that Brodie was the source of a NAFTA leak that briefly rocked the American presidential primaries this year.

At issue was a claim that Barack Obama's anti-NAFTA statements were more about politics than substance.

It hurt Obama in the Ohio Democratic primary, a state where the NAFTA deal is blamed for job losses and is therefore very unpopular.

Two subsequent investigations cleared Brodie of any role in the leak.

Brodie worked for Harper from 2006 to 2008, before that, he was executive director of the federal Conservative party.

He is also an associate professor of political science at the University of Western Ontario and holds advanced degrees in political science and public law.