A CABINET reshuffle is a moment of high political drama in the lifetime of any government, a merciless game of snakes and ladders for ministers that can also be revealing about the condition and direction of an administration. So it is with David Cameron’s reshuffle this week, despite his decision to leave the most important offices - chancellor of the exchequer, foreign secretary and home secretary - unchanged and the limits coalition government place on his room for manoeuvre.
This was almost entirely a reshuffle of Conservative ministers that signalled a marked shift to the right that should please some of the prime minister’s restive backbenchers. Mr Cameron’s decision to punish some of his more imaginative and freethinking ministers, notably Kenneth Clarke, who was moved from justice to become a minister without portfolio, suggests political weakness, however, as does his failure to persuade Iain Duncan Smith to leave his post as work and pensions secretary.
Mr Clarke, whose perceived liberalism and opposition to locking up more of his fellow citizens angered the Conservative right, is replaced by Chris Grayling, a hardliner whose strident criticism of the European Court of Human Rights is likely to intensify Britain’s stand-off with the Strasbourg court. Other appointments also signal a shift in policy, notably Justine Greening’s move from the transport portfolio, which could presage an abandonment of the government’s opposition to a third runway for Heathrow airport. The most surprising move is the promotion to health secretary of Jeremy Hunt, who as culture secretary faced severe criticism for his office’s unseemly closeness to that of Rupert Murdoch, over whose business interests Mr Hunt had a regulatory role.
The appointment of Theresa Villiers as Northern Ireland secretary will be welcomed by political leaders in the North, who were stung by criticism of the Stormont executive voiced by her predecessor, Owen Paterson. Ms Villiers, who will be the first woman to serve as Northern Ireland secretary since Mo Mowlam, is unlikely to change course, however, and she made clear this week that “rebalancing” the northern economy would be among her priorities. This means reducing the role of the public sector in the North’s economy and its dependence on transfers from Westminster. None of Mr Cameron’s moves this week will ease the pressure on public finances and could further fuel tensions with his coalition partners.