A source close to Mr Blair has confirmed that he in the final stages of negotiating a deal with Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy, which he is expected to begin working for later this year.

"There is an agreement in principle but nothing has been signed yet," said the source.

"Mr Blair won't be joining the board but he will be acting in an advisory role, working very closely with Mr Arnault.

"In particular, his job is likely to involve attracting new clients."

Mr Blair is expected to be paid a six-figure sum by the firm for his part-time role, which will be his third consultancy with a major international company.

Norman Lamb, the Liberal Democrat frontbencher and an outspoken critic of Mr Blair's links to the super-rich, said the arrangement "looks horribly incestuous" and suggested parliamentary rules on former ministers' employment needed to be tightened.

Mr Lamb said: "This leaves an extremely unpleasant taste in the mouth about what all this is about.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/politics/6950815/Tony-Blairs-new-job-with-luxury-goods-firm.html