Well, here's my prediction for Gordon Brown's first Cabinet. We'll soon know how accurate my guesses are.
Prime Minister: Gordon Brown
Deputy Prime Minister: Alan Johnson
Chancellor: Alistair Darling
Home Secretary: John Denham
Foreign Secretary: Jack Straw
Education: Alan Johnson
Health: David Miliband
Transport: Stephen Timms
Trade & Industry: Ed Balls
Attorney General: Baroness Scotland
Communities & Local Government: Hazel Blears
Chairman of the Labour Party: Peter Hain
Chief Whip: Nick Brown
Environment: Hilary Benn
Justice: Liam Byrne
Work & Pensions: John Hutton
Leader of the House of Commons: Harriet Harman
DCMS: James Purnell
Northern Ireland: Geoff Hoon
Leader of the Lords: Neil Kinnock
International Development: Caroline Flint
Defence: Douglas Alexander
Chief Secretary to the Treasury: Yvette Cooper
Social Exclusion & Cabinet Office: Jacqui Smith
38 comments:
Let's not jump the gun there Iain!
There is still time for the current Prime Minister to call a snap election!
I agree with your prediction except for Caroline- no wine on my table- Flint, and that excuse for a minister blears. Why is she not out in the far east running a sweat shop?
No Andy Burnham. Big Mistake.
On reflection, you may be right.
It's a safe bet that Gordon will pick his nose...
Broon could not appoint another Jock as Chancellor. Too West Lothian.
Strawman as Foreign Secretary would be a good "up yours" to Bliar, but because of the above I fancy Strawman rather as Broon's successor as Chancellor.
I think Benn would be a good Foreign Secretary and cannot believe you are serous about Alan "The Mod" Johnson at Education, innit.
I cannot understand your preoccupation with Blears, who is an obnoxious, demented dwarf.
Apart from that I am sure you know what you are talking about.
Do you not think Balls might be set for one of the bigger jobs? T&I is important, but I wonder if he'll get the No.10 key. It would be great for the Tories to have a Chancellor who actually sulks whenever he doesn't like a question.
Hain party chair? I doubt it. He'll probably get the sack.
Iain, what is it with you and Hazel Blears? I just don't get it.
On reflection, maybe that's the problem...
Iain, you missed out the Lib Dems...
No.11, even ;)
Can't be Balls in No 11. As I've said somewhere before, the shrieking Sun headlines would be just too much:
ONE MORE BIG BALLS-UP!
BALLS DROPS TO NEW LOW!
Miliband at Health seems a good call.
Hilary Benn at Environment ? Hmm.. I think Brown will need to offer him more than that to keep him 'inside the tent'. And the farmers would crucify him - his dad wants farmland to be nationalised for goodness sake!
Chief Whip - Nick Brown.
Hmmm.. Can't really see that one myself. But the trouble is the one guy that would be really good at whipping, Alan Milburn, ain't really going to do Gordon's bidding.
We shall see..
I thought Brown had decided being a member of the Labour Party disqualified one from being minister in his government.
Quite sensible really, it means that he won't have to worry about any of his ministerial colleagues plotting to replace him. He won't want to go the same way as Blair after all.
I'd be surprised if you have 70% of the names right. 50% in correct posts at best.
Mr Dale, I'm intrigued by your prediction of John Denham as the next Home Secretary. I've been impressed by his work as the Chairman of the Home Affairs Select Committee and that should surely put him in very good standing, but has there been any trend in the past of Select Committee Chairmen becoming ministers in the appropriate Departments?
No Sir Alan Sugar?
Chris Paul, well com eon then, put your money where your mouth is. Do your own list and let;s see who's on the money. I'd actually be quite happy with those percentages!
Some good choices I thought. Denham being ex-HO is an interesting idea, although don't forget the HO has changed since he was a minister. As it has since Jack Straw was, but Straw is presumably coming back.
I don't think Liam will get Justice (too big a job), and I can't spot Ruth Kelly in your list - I thought she was a Brown favourite?
I suspect Ed Miliband will be in there somewhere. And I think it will be Mr, nor Mrs Balls, who goes to the Treasury as Chief Sec.
The Kinnock prediction has been made before by both of us, but I would now be absolutely astonished to see it happen.
Glad to see you/GB have/has abolished the post of S of S for Scotland. We don't want any more Governor-Generals north of the Border.
My God not wee Dougie Alexander at Defence. Our squaddies have suffred enough with the string of low grade ministers. Now a weepie boy who raises waffle to new heights in charge? If true it would show a worrying contempt of GB for HM forces.
On the other hand we could use Dougie's nose as a replacement for Trident.
Justice: Liam Byrne
What, really? I don't see Byrne being kicked upstairs so soon (remember that SoS Justice is more correctly Lord Chancellor with secondary functions). Denham might be a better fit, perhaps - he has obvious strong interest in the CJS and especially the more practical side of the HO's former work, and, well, he's had fifteen years in the House, as opposed to Byrne's mere three.
Frankly, however, I'm not too hot on the scant few active Labour peers, so maybe there are some potentials lurking there.
Be patient, why guess? All Shall be Well and All Manner of Things Will be Well...
Well Iain, I've given my comments on your picks here. If you're only going to get half the jobs right (and that is 'at most') and be satisfied at that what is the point?
PS Byrne is a University of Manchester hotshot and could stand the fast track. Better then Ed M by a long way in that respect.
What about Wales & Scotland, or will they come under Social Exclusion?
I still reckon there's a good chance that The Mystery Cat will be retaining the Chancellorship for himself.
There's precedent for both top jobs being held within one Fist, I believe.
I think you'll see Margaret staying at the FO, Darling at the Treasury and Jack Straw at Home. Reckon Ed Balls at the DTI and D Miliband to stay where he is. Ed Miliband is probably ahead of Liam Byrne for promotion and possibly Andy Burnham too. Hoon for Chief Whip or Justice. No room for Kinnock is my guess - what's the benefit? Otherwise a strong list
John "He'd be a fucking disaster as prime minister" Hutton still in the cabinet?
Hmmm.
Pillock, Lords leader?
Do you not think that the make-up of the cabinet will change? You have all the same job titles as Blair, and at roughly the same level.
I'll guess that Environment, DTI, Social Exclusion, Communities, Leader of the House and NI (+Sco and Wal) would be shifting briefs. Possibly Miliband (D) at a beefed up Environment and Energy (Health-Jacqui Smith), Social Exclusion/Communities as one dept - Blears, local govt/regions to Hain and at least Scotland and Wales shifting from Justice there. The other one I think could be a change is LoH will move towards a Canadian House Leader or Scottish Minister for Parliament and be more prominent - Hoon possibly, Harman at Justice.
Alternatively we could read this from January http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/politics/article1265597.ece but that takes away half the fun
Have you seen www.fantasycabinet.com
You think a cabinet post for Douglas Alexander after he was responsible for the mess he made of the Scottish elections? Oh! Wait a minute! You're correct! Of course Brown will give him a job just to get at Alex Salmond.
Re Hugh Dowding/Keith Park
Not being English, maybe I can be permitted to comment-
if you look at a leading RAF officer, maybe the country needs another Arthur "Bomber" Harris- he new how to deal with the Germans
What about the promised non-Labour members, who, since they cannot now be Lib Dems, must be Tories?
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