No 10 and cabinet media departments to merge into 'super press office'

David Cameron could have the most powerful Downing Street media operation in history at his disposal if he becomes prime minister in May. Senior civil servants are planning to merge the communications operations at the Cabinet Office and Downing Street after a likely general election in May, creating what one political source describes as a "super press office". Sir Gus O'Donnell, the Cabinet secretary, and Jeremy Heywood, the most senior civil servant at No 10, have agreed to the plan, which has been drawn up by Simon Lewis, the prime minister's official spokesman. A briefing note written by Lewis explaining the proposed changes was circulated to staff yesterday. Lewis describes the changes as "a sensible and significant step forward" to produce "a more effective and aligned approach". This enlarged PR operation will have a "single senior management team", according to the briefing note, which will be headed by Lewis. The Downing Street press office has a staff of about 12, although closer to 40 work in the communications team as a whole. A similar number are employed in the equivalent operation in the Cabinet Office. The combined press office will be run by Vickie Sheriff, currently head of news at No 10. A new head of digital communications will report to the Cabinet Office. According to the briefing note, a new "strategic communications unit", headed by Mark Flanagan, one of Gordon Brown's most senior media advisors, will be created. It will report to Lewis. The Cabinet Office, effectively the head office of government, will not be dismantled and it will continue to employ dedicated communications staff. Special advisors are unaffected by the plan. A senior political source described the changes as "structural" and pointed out that few, if any, staff will relocate from the cabinet office to No 10. "It is about deploying resources more effectively," the insider said. The move is being justified as a cost-saving measure internally, with the Cabinet Office claiming that it will generate efficiency savings of around 10%, mainly by merging back office and support staff. Some senior jobs at the Cabinet Office are also likely to be scrapped. In his briefing note, Lewis says those functions will be merged under the new structure, with the cabinet office's responsibility to lead "cross-Government initiatives and pro-active communications projects" combined with the responsibilities of No 10 to overse "news management, strategic planning and direct communications support for the PM". It says the changes will be implemented by 1 July. That could hand Cameron a powerful PR team and give Andy Coulson, his director of communications and strategy, an army of advisors on which to draw if the Conservatives form the next government and the former News of the World editor follows the Tory leader into Downing Street. There is significant overlap between the two PR departments. Downing Street and the Cabinet Office each have separate strategic communications units and websites that could easily be merged. These changes have been under consideration for some time and they will be pushed through during the election period, when Whitehall is relatively quiet. No 10 has been making use of new media, including Twitter and Youtube, with varied results. Sarah Brown has well over a million followers on Twitter, but Brown was ridiculed for his clumsy delivery and rictus smile when he filmed a short clip for the video-sharing website. In theory, the Cabinet Office, which sits at the heart of government, coordinates announcements from all Whitehall departments, while the No 10 press team deals with matters relating directly to the prime minister. The Conservative party has not been consulted about the changes. • To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email [email protected] or phone 020 3353 3857. For all other inquiries please call the main Guardian switchboard on 020 3353 2000. • If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearly "for publication".