The New Cabinet

[Filuwaúrdjan]

And now for the post election reshuffle:

Blunkett is back: As Work & Pensions Secretary
Hewitt gets Health
Reid gets Defense
Hoon is the new Leader of the House
Johnson gets a new Department: Productivity, Energy and Industry
Miliband gets a new Department: Community and Local Government

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Wait... there's more...

The full list:

Prime Minister: Tony Blair
Deputy PM & First Secretary: John Prescott
Chancellor: Gordon Brown
Constitutional Affairs: Lord Falconer
Chief Whip: Hilary Armstrong
Cheif Secretary to the Treasury: Des Browne
Communities & Local Government: David Miliband
Culture, Media & Sport: Tessa Jowell
Defense: Dr John Reid
Duchy of Lancaster: John Hutton
Education & Skills: Ruth Kelly
Enviroment, Food & Rural Affairs: Margarat Beckett
Foreign Secretary: Jack Straw
Health: Patrica Hewitt
Home Secretary: Charles Clarke
Leader of the Commons: Geoff Hoon
Leader of the Lords: Baroness Amos
Northern Ireland: Peter Hain
Productivity, Energy & Industry: Alan Johnson
Transport: Alistair Darling
Without Portfolio (ie: Chairman of the Labour Party) Ian McCartney
Work & Pensions: David Blunkett

[Silent Hunter]

Nice to see Jack Straw keep his job and Hoon go from Defence.

[True Federalist (진정한 연방 주의자)]

Any chance of adding the a post similar to John Hutton’s for the Duchy of Cornwall to the Cabinet or are Cornwall and Lancaster too different in how their adminstration is set up for there to be an analogue that could be added to the cabinet as a second “minister without portfolio that isn’t called a minister without portfolio”?

[Banana Republic]

I'm glad that Straw isn't going anywhere. I would re-instate Blunkett as Home Secretary, but I'm not sure where Clarke should go(not back to education, he was a failure and I like Kelly)

[Emsworth]

Any chance of adding the a post similar to John Hutton’s for the Duchy of Cornwall to the Cabinet or are Cornwall and Lancaster too different in how their adminstration is set up for there to be an analogue that could be added to the cabinet as a second “minister without portfolio that isn’t called a minister without portfolio”?

Although the Duchy of Lancaster has a Chancellor, the Duchy of Cornwall does not. I believe that this not for any actual administrative reasons; rather, this has just traditionally been the case.

There are, however, numerous other non-jobs that could be used for "ministers without portfolio." The Leaders of the two Houses, for instance, are Lord President of the Council and Lord Privy Seal; these two jobs could be separated from the leadership positions. Another solution would be to use the position of First Lord of the Admiralty or Lord High Admiral (currently held by the Queen) as a sinecure.

[J. J.]

Well is Baroness Amos staying on as Lord President or has she become Lord Privy Seal? 

[Emsworth]

Well is Baroness Amos staying on as Lord President or has she become Lord Privy Seal? 

Lady Amos is still Lord President of the Council. The Leadership of the Commons remains attached to the post of Lord Privy Seal.

[Silent Hunter]

Lord Privy Seal- a job that has nothing to do with any of those words.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

I'm pleased that energy and industry have gone together (finally). Even more pleased that Alan Johnson gets that portfolio.

[Emsworth]

Lord Privy Seal- a job that has nothing to do with any of those words.

In the words of Sir Edward Heath, he is neither a lord, nor a privy, nor a seal.

[Peter]

I'm pleased that energy and industry have gone together (finally). Even more pleased that Alan Johnson gets that portfolio.

Allowing a former trade union leader to run the Government's Department for Industry is like sending George Galloway to Iraq to negoitiate the surrender of Saddam Hussein. This is positively the worst appointment made, although allowing John Reid to remain in the Government was also particuarly stupid.

[minionofmidas]

Wait... there's more...

The full list:

Prime Minister: Tony Blair

BOO! Reshuffle! Reshuffle! Reshuffle!

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Yeah!

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Yeah!

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What's that post about these days?

[minionofmidas]

Lord Privy Seal- a job that has nothing to do with any of those words.

Except that you probably need to be as slick as a seal to keep it for long.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Allowing a former trade union leader to run the Government's Department for Industry is like sending George Galloway to Iraq to negoitiate the surrender of Saddam Hussein.

He ran the Posties union, not one of the big manufacturing ones. Politically he's more from the old Right than the Left, so I wouldn't expect mass re-nationalisations or anything

The hand of Prescott is visable with that appointment; so is the fact that McCartney is staying on.
I forget whether it was Brown or Prescott that kept Kelly at education.

The junior ministers get announced today; it'll be interesting to see what jobs Balls, (Ed) Miliband and McFadden get.

Later today I'm going to try to group all the Labour M.P's (especially the new ones) into rough political/ideological groupings.

[Filuwaúrdjan]

It appears none of the NI parties are happy that Peter Hain in Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and Wales, considering it a snub and a reduction in priorities.

Haha!

Hain has an amazing ability to offend people without really trying. Could be a fun few years...

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Junior stuff announced: no jobs for any new M.P's. Apparently Bev Hughes has become a minister again. No full list yet. Will post most when found out...

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Adonis gets a Peerage and becomes a minister in the Lords (education).
Oh dear. Him and Kelly hate each other...

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Three names I missed off the Cabinet (although not technically members, they'll be attending cabinet meetings)

Lords Chief Whip and Captain of the Gentlemen at Arms: Lord Grocott (my old M.P)

Attorney General: Lord Goldsmith

Minister of State for Europe in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Douglas Alexander

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Shaun Woodward has a job in NI

[Filuwaúrdjan]

The list in full:

Law Officers

Solicitor General: Mike O'Brien (not a bad choice; he's sharp if a little unscruplous at times)

ODPM

Minister for Local Government: Phil Woolas (good choice)
Minister for Housing and Planning: Yvette Cooper (good choice)
Parliamentary Secretaries: Jim Fitzpatrick (his seat borders on Galloways. Interesting...), Baroness Andrew

Cabinet Office

Parliamentary Secretary: Jim Murphy

Treasury

Financial Secretary: John Healy
Economic Secretary: Ivan Lewis

Leader of the House of Commons

Parliamentary Secretary: Nigel Griffiths (good choice. Hopefully Woolas' luck in dealing with a LibDem threat pays off...)

Constitutional Affairs

Minister of State: Harriet Harmen (not a bad choice. She's now the safest M.P in London, btw)
Parliamentary Secretary: Bridget Prentice

Foreign Office

Minister for Europe: Douglas Alexander (the hand of Brown is clear to see here)
Minister for the Middle East: Dr Kim Howells (genius! The Middle East won't know what's hit it... )
Parliamentary Secretary: Lord Triesman

Home Office

Minister of State: Tom McNulty
Parliamentary Secretary: Andy Burham

DEFRA

Parliamentary Secretaries; Jim Knight (yay!), Lord Bach

Work and Pensions

Minister for Work: Margarat Hodge
Minister for Pensions: Stephen Timms (good choice)
Parliamentary Secretaries: Lord Hunt, James Plaskitt, Liz Blackman (Kilroy killer)

Transport

Minister of State: Dr Stephen Ladyman
Parliamentary Secretaries: Derek Twigg, Karen Buck

Health

Ministers of State: Jane Kennedy, Lord Warner
Parliamentary Secretaries: Caroline Flint (good choice), Liam Byrne (good choice)

North Ireland

Ministers of State: David Hanson, Lord Rooker
Parliamentary Secretary: Shaun Woodward

MoD

Parliamentary Secretaries: Don Touhig, Lord Drayson

DPEI

Minister for Energy: Malcom Wicks
Minister for Trade: Ian Pearson
Minister of State: Alun Micheal (good choice. He was wasted at DEFRA)

Education

Minister for Schools: Jacqui Smith
Minister for Universities: Bill Rammell
Minister for Children: Bev Hughes (not a bad choice, but very controversiual)
Parliamentary Secretaries: Lord Adonis (has generated all the headlines...), Phil Hope, Maria Eagle

Culture, Media, Sport

Parliamentary Secretaries: James Purnell, David Lammy

Wales

Parliamentary Secretary: Nick Ainger

Lords

Baroness in waiting: Baroness Royall of Blaisdon

Lord in waiting and parliamentary secretary: Lord McKenzie of Luton

House of Commons

Vice Chamberlain of Her Majesty's Household: John Heppell
Lord Commisioner: Vernon Coaker, Tom Watson (yay!)
Assistant Whips: Frank Roy, Ian Cawsey, Alan Campbell, Dave Watts, Claire Ward, Parmjit Dhanda, Tony Cunningham, Kevin Brennan, Joan Ryan

PPS to the PM

Keith Hill

[Emsworth]

House of Commons

Vice Chamberlain of Her Majesty's Household: John Heppell
Lord Commisioner: Vernon Coaker, Tom Watson (yay!)
Assistant Whips: Frank Roy, Ian Cawsey, Alan Campbell, Dave Watts, Claire Ward, Parmjit Dhanda, Tony Cunningham, Kevin Brennan, Joan Ryan

Is Thomas McAvoy still Comptroller of HM Household and a whip?

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Can't find that position on No.10's site, so I guess not

[Filuwaúrdjan]

Nick Raynsford is pissed off that he's not in the cabinet, so decided to quit being Minister for Local Government. I think he's got a right to be annoyed; he's a talented minister and's come up with some of the best arguements against a local income tax I've seen (it comes from a left wing point of view, btw).
Someone who seems to have made a similer choice is John Denham (although he wasn't a minister at the time of the reshuffle). Again a real shame. He should have been made Leader of the House instead of Buff Hoon IMO.