Vodafone Group Plc announces that Simon Lewis has been appointed as Group Director of Corporate Affairs and that he will join the Group's Executive Committee.

Simon Lewis, 45, joins Vodafone from Centrica plc, where he was Director of Communications and Public Policy and a member of the Executive Committee. Previously he had been Managing Director for Europe, responsible for developing and growing Centrica's interests in Continental Europe. In 1998 he was seconded for two years to Buckingham Palace as the first Communications Secretary to The Queen.

Before joining Centrica in 1996, Mr Lewis was Director of Corporate Affairs at Nat West Group and Head of Public Relations at S.G. Warburg Group. He started his career at the public relations company Shandwick Consultants having been educated at Oxford University and at the University of California at Berkeley, as a Fulbright Scholar. He was President of the Institute of Public Relations in 1997 and is a Fulbright Commissioner and Visiting Professor at the Cardiff School of Journalism.

Concerning his appointment, Simon Lewis said, "This is a unique opportunity to join a truly global company at such an important stage in its development. I am very much looking forward to working with Arun Sarin and his management team as Vodafone continues to grow as a major international brand and business."

Arun Sarin, Vodafone's Chief Executive, commented, "I am delighted that Simon will be joining Vodafone. He brings extensive experience of communications across a broad range of disciplines and we look forward to working with him as a member of Vodafone's senior management team."

For further information:

Vodafone Group
Bobby Leach
Tel: +44 (0) 1635 673310