Who will replace Andy Coulson as No 10’s chief spin doctor?

Andy Coulson stepped down as the Prime Minister’s Communications Director last Friday, leaving a large hole in David Cameron‘s Government.

Mr Coulson stepped down over the News of the World phone hacking scandal saying that the focus on the story and his time as editor of the News of the World made it impossible for him to continue to give the “110 per cent needed” in his current role.

“When the spokesman needs a spokesman, it’s time to move on,” he said.

And his departure has sparked a fevered debate on who should be his successor.

Although not a household name, the role Andy Coulson played was vital to David Cameron’s Government.

Gary Gibbon outlined that importance on Channel 4 News on the day of Coulson’s departure: “Andy Coulson was a person who brought a different demographic into the room. Not only did he work in newspapers and understood the cut-throat world of tabloids, he actually came from a different background – a comprehensive school, a council house, an Essex background very different from everybody else in the room.

“And there were moments I think when David Cameron valued his input enormously. When he pulled him back from a decision or a policy announcement that might have otherwise been embarrassing – that might have disconnected him with voters.”

Replacing him will not be easy – particularly if David Cameron is looking for another “man of the people”. Strategically, the Government may want to distance itself from the News of the World scandal by avoiding any ex-Murdoch employee too.

Lance Price, political commentator and former Labour Party Director of Communications, told Channel 4 News that the Government will be “looking for someone who can combine a good understanding of media and the political position of the Government, and they can’t have one without the other.”

Tim Montgomerie, Editor of ConservativeHome, has outlined on his blog what he believes are the key challenges facing a potential successor.

Top of his nine points he says: “What is needed is a senior person, who enjoys the confidence of the Prime Minister, who will explain the strategic thinking behind announcements to political editors (regularly) and who is also available to political reporters.”

So who are the contenders?

Ladbrokes is currently offering odds on more than twenty names to replace Coulson. Top of that list is Ian Birrell (6/4), the former Deputy Editor for the Independent. Birrell became one of Cameron’s key speechwriters during the election and the two are said to share a close understanding as both men are fathers to disabled children.

Welshman Guto Hari, the former BBC Chief Political Correspondent for BBC News 24 and current communications chief for London Mayor Boris Johnson was second favourite – at 3/1. No stranger to either TV or radio, Hari was previously considered for Coulson’s role in 2007. But Hari’s odds have risen to 20/1 after “Downing Street sources” ruled him out of contention.

Other possible contenders include George Pascoe Watson, former Political Editor at The Sun and current Director at Portland PR agency (5/1). However given the problems Mr Coulson found with his former association with News of the World, hiring another ex-Murdoch employee may prove troublesome for the Government, not least with the BSkyB deal hanging in the air.

A familiar face to ITV News viewers, Political Editor Tom Bradby has also been touted as a potential candidate. Ladbrokes released a press release on how Bradby’s odds as a replacement were “slashed” from 16/1 to 10/1.

Alex Donohue of Ladbrokes said: “Bradby is the latest in a long line of gambles as the rumour mill churns. Political punters are latching onto every morsel of information that leaks in an attempt to land us with a costly payout.”

Ironically, Bradby’s close relationship with Prince William, formed whilst being ITV’s Royal Correspondent, meant he was the first person to uncover the phone hacking story in 2006.

The Telegraph’s Deputy Editor, Ben Brogan, is also an option at 16/1. He has recently blogged on the Coulson affair saying that “presentationally, this looks terrible” and commented on Cameron’s judgement for appointing Coulson.

“Choosing Mr Coulson raised eyebrows in all sorts of places,” he wrote.

“I am assured, for example, that it ‘clouded’ the Tory leader’s relations with the Royal family.”

The News of the World’s former royal editor, Clive Goodman, was jailed in 2007 along with private detective Glenn Mulcaire for intercepting telephone messages for Prince William and Prince Harry.

Another print man, Danny Finkelstein, the Executive Editor at The Times, has been given slightly better odds at 12/1.

He too has written on the affair saying that: “Hiring someone new is risky, since a perfectly capable person, with an impeccable CV, may easily be a total political flop.”

Finkelstein is no newcomer to politics. In the 2001 general election he ran for Harrow West for the Conservative Party but came second.

However the decision process itself cannot take too long. Lance Price offered a final warning to David Cameron, pointing to Gordon Brown’s tenure as Prime Minister, when he took his time in choosing his communications chief and says that his “premiership suffered enormously as a result.”

Cameron can’t take too long to make his choice of new communications chief, he warns, as simply: “A Government can’t last very long and operate effectively without one”.