The ABC's departing chief political correspondent Mark Simkin will lead Tony Abbott's media team in a behind-the-scenes shake-up announced by the Prime Minister late today.

A statement from the Prime Minister's office said Simkin would take up the role of head of the Prime Minister's press office in the new year.

Simkin's departure from the ABC was announced earlier today.

A former foreign correspondent, he has been the ABC's Canberra-based chief political correspondent for the past five years.

As part of the shake-up in the PM's press office, deputy chief of staff Andrew Hirst will take on a new role that will combine "strategic communications with overall responsibility for the Prime Minister's Press Office," the statement from the PM's office said.

The appointments will take effect in January.