Friday 3 October 2008

The future's bright?




More proof that orange is this year's black in the political world. This Wales Office photo shows Paul Murphy "getting on with the job" to borrow a Brownite phrase as the Cabinet reshuffle takes place.

I've been juggling childcare with news today (no reshuffle news on Balamory yet) so I'm not as plugged in as usual but it appears we can forget all the media predictions that Mr Murphy would be sacked as the Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland are merged.

There were always many reasons why that merger would have caused political and practical problems for Gordon Brown at the moment, even if it remains his long-term ambition.
After eight years reporting the speculation that this may happen, a few more months won't make much difference. For the time being at least, three jobs that have previously been part-time are now full-time Cabinet roles.

It's just possible that tomorrow's newspapers don't rate the survival of the Wales Office as the big story. Apparently some bloke from Brussels (via Hartlepool) is coming back into the Government.

I've heard arch critics of Gordon Brown describe Peter Mandelson's return as a masterstroke. Some Labour MPs aren't quite as joyful but it will certainly keep political hacks busy.

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