Michael Gove set for promotion in new Boris Johnson cabinet
Michael Gove is reportedly set for an expanded role in the new Boris Johnson cabinet, while a number of high-profile figures may be destined for the chop.
The Duchy of Lancaster’s role in Johnson’s first cabinet was as master planner for a potential no-deal Brexit.
Read more: Boris Johnson prepares mini-cabinet reshuffle as new Tory MPs arrive
He is now set to oversee phase-two of Brexit talks, while also being put in charge of running the cabinet office, according to the Sunday Telegraph.
Whitehall sources say Gove will become the “de-facto” deputy prime minister in the new role.
It is also being reported that several high profile women are set to be sacked from cabinet, including international trade secretary Liz Truss, business secretary Andrea Leadsom and environment secretary Theresa Villiers.
This would be a particular blow to Truss who was being talked up as a potential candidate for chancellor in the lead-up to Boris Johnson’s first cabinet announcement last summer.
Meanwhile, former defence secretary Penny Mordaunt and former foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt have been mooted as potential candidates for promotion back into cabinet.
Large changes are expected in the structure of Whitehall when Johnson announces his new cabinet next month.
Read more: Boris Johnson and Dominic Cummings eye Whitehall overhaul
His senior adviser, and Vote Leave mastermind, Dominic Cummings has drawn up plans to cut the number of cabinet ministers and merge several departments.
In a 2014 speech to the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) think tank, he said only six or seven MPs should attend cabinet meetings.
While the new cabinet will certainly not be that small, there is expected to be a cull from the 32 who currently attend.