Reshuffle

[longfingernails]

The wet Dominic Grieve out.
The wet Damien Green out.
The no common sense Willetts out.
The wet Ken Clarke quits.
The useless Alan Duncan out.

Also, Greg Barker, David Jones, Nick Hurd all out.

Rumours about some Very Big Changes.

Who will be in?

[longfingernails]

Hague quits as Foreign Secretary and will not stand as an MP in 2015. That's a shame, though Hammond is a good replacement.

Overall, the axe seems to be falling on the right people...

[ChillieJeanie]

Has Hammond been named as replacement? I haven't seen that anywhere yet. Hague leaving parliament entirely is a big surprise. I always felt he went for the leadership too early, and in my view he is one of the best prime ministers we never had. It will be a shame to see someone of his calibre leave the Commons, but I hope he will be in the Lords a few years down the line.

It surprises me, too, that Ken Clarke has said he intends to continue as an MP. At 74 I would have thought he would be thinking about hanging up his boots entirely.

[claig]

Strange about Hague leaving Parliament.

[longfingernails]

Hmmm it seems Hammond to FS is just a rumour.

Andrew Lansley is out too.

[ChillieJeanie]

Apparently he wants to concentrate on writing and on campaigning on international causes (unspecified in his statement) that he believes in. 26 years as an MP is a decent innings, but I would never have expected him to go just yet.

How about Theresa May as a possible Foreign Secretary? With her, the only options can surely be stay as Home Sec or replace Hague.

[ChillieJeanie]

Nick Robinson has tweeted the Hammond rumour (as told to him by a Minister, supposedly).

This is a pretty major reshuffle, big changes all round.

Just heard Nick Robinson on the BBC website saying May is thought to be staying at the Home Office.

[longfingernails]

If she wants to become PM she should remain Home Secretary (and she has the clout to insist upon it). She is making a decent job of what is traditionally a political graveyard.

If there is any glory to be won abroad, the PM takes it; the Foreign Secretary is little more than an ambassador-at-large without a high profile.

[ChillieJeanie]

Greg Barker is standing down as an MP as well. He has a majority of over 12 thousand - Bexhill and Battle as a possible for Boris?

[jonicomelately]

Very interesting. Just watching Newsnight now. I bet Hague has a brilliant job lined up.
I hope they get rid of Chris Grayling.

[longfingernails]

There are lots of ministerial and Cabinet vacancies, and even quite a few safe Tory seats, which are now up for grabs.

[longfingernails]

jonicomelately Why? Chris Grayling seems like he is doing OK. He is not a wet, unlike his appalling predecessor Crispin Blunt.

[MinutesOfMeetings]

It makes me laugh that the news keeps saying its the cull of the white male, how could it be the cull of anything else given the cabinet was 90 per cent white male?

[ChillieJeanie]

May has certainly been a cracking Home Sec so far and I hope she stays. I met her once, years ago. Very impressive woman.

[ChillieJeanie]

Tweet from Hague: I will take forward the UK campaign to end sexual violence in conflict as the PM's Special Representative

Good man. So the conference the other week was a forerunner of what is to come.

[SittingNextToSanta]

I would like to see May stay as Home Secretary, especially now.

There needs to be a cull of a certain type of Male.

[claig]

On Newsnight now, Isabel Hardman said that some eurosceptic Toris felt that Hague may have gone "native" at the Foreign Office, coming out with stuff like "use Eeurope to tackle climate change".

Climate change! I ask you! Gone native! What happened to good old-fashioned real Conservatives? - oh, they're all in UKIP.

[ChillieJeanie]

If Hammond does get the Foreign Office, what's the likelihood that Fox will get Defence back? It's certainly his area of special interest and he was good.

[claig]

Hammond has got it. Newsnight said so.

[claig]

Good call on Fox for defence. He is a right hawk. Expect lots of anti-Putin type stuff. Great for foreign relations.

[claig]

I can't see Hague leaving politics to campaign on issues like Gordon Brown etc. Strange.

[longfingernails]

I don't think Liam Fox should return as Defence Secretary. I don't think he was particularly great in the defence role (Hammond was far better).

[ChillieJeanie]

I remember hearing Fox warning about the military expansion under Putin at party conference years ago. I can't remember what year, Blair may still have been PM.

[jonicomelately]

longfingernails

He wants to dismantle the justice system. He also upset a lot of people when he proposed measures to stop prisoners having access to reading books. I think he's absolutely atrocious.

[longfingernails]

I really wish Cameron had the guts to sack Baroness Warsi. She's useless. Sadly I fear she will linger on.

[longfingernails]

jonicomelately I think his views on scrapping the ECHR and cutting legal aid are fantastic.

I agree though that restricting access to books seems counterproductive and I hope he reconsiders; I can't really see the point. I would certainly restrict access to TVs, radios, etc. but not books.