A cabinet reshuffle occurs when the head of government (a prime minister or premier) changes the composition of his or her cabinet by moving people between roles. This usually involves promotions and demotions and often requires creating new departments. Reshuffles are more common in parliamentary systems where cabinet heads must be confirmed by a separate legislative body. They are less common in systems where the head of state has exclusive executive power and can remove or replace ministers at will.
Reshuffles are a key tool in government management and have huge ramifications. They can be used to reward political rivals, or to show a change of direction in policy. They can also be a way to refresh the top team by bringing in new MPs. They can be a response to battles within cabinet, or unfavourable opinion polls.
They can also reveal weaknesses in the relationship between the head of government and his or her cabinet. If a minister is reluctant to take on a new role, or is not happy with the one they have been given, a reshuffle can backfire and lead to political instability. The Committee’s report on the impact of excessive ministerial churn warned that it makes it harder for ministers to develop expertise in their department and to hold their peers to account for policies they have implemented.
While many observers think that reshuffles are a phenomenon unique to Westminster contexts, this special collection demonstrates that they are not. With the right conceptual and analytical tools, a wide variety of disciplinary perspectives can be brought to bear on this important issue.