Adam Smith Institute

Gordon Brown's rumoured cabinet reshuffle will no doubt bring interesting results after the events of the past few months.

It was rumoured yesterday that John Hutton may be moved from his position at the Department for Business, Enterprise, and Regulatory Reform (BERR). He was one of Blair’s closest allies before 2007, and recently failed to condemn backbench rebels. So you can see why Brown might have an issue with him.

But it would be a crime against good sense if Hutton were demoted – he's one of the few decent ministers in the cabinet. In his current role he has proved popular with business and unpopular with the unions (often a good sign), and won a few admirers at the ASI when he heavily criticised the Windfall Tax on energy firms.

Here's a better idea for Brown. Abolish BERR (is it really worth £5bn a year?) and give Hutton a better job. After all, right now Brown’s ‘government of all the talents’ seems to be facing one major hitch: there's not much talent on offer.

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