Gordon Brown will today insist that he plays a key role in Labour's general election campaign.

The chancellor is set to tell the Labour Party that the economy will be "central to people's concerns at the next election, as at every election".

Brown's comments, which are seen as an expression of his determination not to be sidelined following the appointment of Alan Milburn as head of the party's general election campaign, follow fresh reports of a rift between the chancellor and prime minister.

In an interview with the Sunday Telegraph, the chancellor refused to say whether he enjoys a strong relationship with the prime minister.

"I've got my job to do and he's got his job to do. It's as simple as that," said Brown.

That statement meant Tony Blair was forced to deny reports that the chancellor had been sidelined.

"He will do exactly what he's always done," Blair told the BBC.

"What's important is we both get on with doing the job of government

And Milburn also insisted the chancellor would be "intimately" involved in election planning.

The Mail claims that close friends of the chancellor say that relations between Gordon Brown and Tony Blair have broken down completely.