Two sackings in reshuffle; Smith back; Bridges, Kaye, Woodhouse move up
By Pattrick Smellie
Jan 22 (BusinessDesk) - Prime Minister John Key welcomed Nick Smith back into the Cabinet in a reshuffle in which he has
also sacked the Labour and Conservation Minister, Kate Wilkinson, and Energy and Housing Minister Phil Heatley.
He also relieved Associate Education Minister Craig Foss of his responsibility for the Novopay system for paying
teachers, putting that in the hands of Cabinet fix-it man and Economic Development Minister Steven Joyce.
Smith returns to Cabinet as Minister of Housing and Conservation, while relatively junior Minister Nathan Guy will
become Minister of Primary Industries, replacing David Carter, who will become Parliament's Speaker to replace Lockwood
Smith, who is to become High Commissioner in London.
Perhaps the biggest winner is Simon Bridges. A novice Associate Minister of Climate Change since last year, Bridges will
add the heavyweight Energy and Labour portfolios and becomes a minister inside Cabinet.
Chris Tremain will become Minister of Local Government, a portfolio that Smith might have expected to pick up, having
been architect of major reforms now occurring.
Two other big winners are Auckland Central MP Nikki Kaye and Senior Whip Michael Woodhouse. Kaye takes Food Safety,
Youth Affairs and Civil Defence and Associate Education Minister. Woodhouse will be a minister outside Cabinet with
responsibility for the Immigration and Veterans Affairs portfolios.
Foss picks up Consumer Affairs and keeps his commerce portfolio, while dropping Associate Education, where he was
nominally in charge of the botched Novopay implementation. Hekia Parata maintains the Education portfolio.
(BusinessDesk)