Lobbyists are engaged in a “desperate” scramble to secure people close to David Cameron, as companies shake up their public-relations operations to prepare for a Conservative government.

Tory officials are being offered double or triple their salaries to move to the private sector, jumping “from five figures to six figures pay for top people”, say industry insiders. Companies are waking up to the fact that links cultivated over 12 years of New Labour may be largely redundant after the general election, which must be held by next June.