Labour's new Alastair Campbell

(AP)

Tom Baldwin, a senior journalist on The Times newspaper, is set to become Ed Miliband's chief communications adviser.

Mr Baldwin, a friend of Alastair Campbell, was Tony Blair's director of communications between 1994 and 2003.

A former political correspondent of The Times, he served as the paper's Washington correspondent for four years before returning to London as chief reporter last year.

Mr Baldwin is likely to take up a backroom strategic role. Bob Roberts, political editor at the Daily Mirror, is tipped to become his spokesman, handling day-to-day relations with the media.