The government is set to publish new rules governing the army of spin doctors and advisers drafted into Whitehall.

The new guidelines, which will accompany a new Ministerial Code of Conduct, will outline the responsibilities of advisers and give guidelines on what contact is permissible with the media.

The move follows a recommendation of the Neill Committee on Public Life which recommended that ministerial advisers be given stricter guidelines on their conduct.

The actions of key advisers such as the prime minister's press secretary, Alastair Campbell, and the former Treasury spin doctor, Charlie Whelan, have been cause for criticism by the government's opponents.

Advisers are also said to be a source of friction between ministers and civil servants - particularly those working within the government's information service.

Since the 1997 general election the number of special advisers has doubled, although it is understood that the government will not yield to calls for a cap on the number of aides.

Under the measures to be contained in the new code of conduct, special advisers could face disciplinary action, or dismissal, for exceeding their roles.