Europe

Home page

Europe

David Cameron’s cabinet: who’s in and who’s out?

14 April 2010 20:52 (UTC +04:00)

Baku â€“ APA. Chris Grayling struggles in the world of David Cameron as Michael Gove, Liam Fox and Oliver Letwin grow in stature, APA reports quoting â€œThe Guardianâ€.

As the general election campaigns nears the end of its first full week it is perhaps time to take a look at the team which hopes to sit round the oak cabinet table in less than a month’s time.

I wrote earlier this month that David Cameron would be wielding the knife because the 32 members of the shadow cabinet could not fit round the cabinet table. This piece was prompted by a Financial Times interview in which Cameron declined to confirm that Chris Grayling, the shadow home secretary, would make it to the Home Office if the Tories win.

Well, the Tory leadership sent a pretty clear signal at the launch of their manifesto yesterday that Grayling is still not valued. While seven members of the shadow cabinet were given prominent speaking slots, Grayling had to sit mute. Theresa May and Caroline Spelman, two more junior members of the shadow cabinet, were invited to speak on the theme Grayling is meant to be championing: how to deal with "broken Britain".

So which Tories are shining? After the obvious big beasts of William Hague and George Osborne, these are five to watch.