Theresa May swung the axe on four ministers tonight as she consolidated her fragile grip on power.
The Prime Minister made the changes as No10 remains in chaos – with the Queen’s Speech delayed and a deal with the hard-right DUP still not hammered out.
Apprenticeships minister Robert Halfon, Armed Forces minister Mike Penning and Justice minister Oliver Heald were all out, Downing Street announced.
Mr Halfon, a former top aide to ex-Chancellor George Osborne who yesterday branded Mrs May a “dead woman walking”, said he was not given a reason for his sacking.
He said he had “loved” the job, adding: “The Prime Minister has to make these decisions, I wasn’t really given a reason”.
Also gone was Brexit minister David Jones, who said it was “impossible to say” if his boss would still be Prime Minister in six months after her election drubbing.
Meanwhile, Mrs May brought back two MPs she dumped from her team last summer.
Brexit -backer Dominic Raab will return as a Justice minister while Remainer Claire Perry will work on business.
Deputy whips Anne Milton and Mel Stride were also promoted to ministerial jobs in education and the Treasury.
And three ministers were moved to new departments – Nick Hurd from business to the Home Office, Robert Goodwill from the Home Office to the Department for Education and Baroness Anelay from the Foreign Office to the Brexit Department.
Mrs May had already completed her Cabinet reshuffle on Sunday but was continuing to jostle MPs into junior roles tonight.
She promoted Brexit backstabber Michael Gove to Environment Secretary in the shake-up – but paralysed by her lack of a majority, was unable to make bigger changes.
Six reasons Michael Gove is an absolutely terrible choice for Environment Secretary in Theresa May’s cabinet reshuffle
Unsackable Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt kept his job as lame duck Mrs May unveiled her reshuffle, dubbed “the most boring ever”.
A procession of ministers sashayed into Downing Street as the Tory leader rejigged her team ahead of a deal with the DUP to stay in power.
But with calls for her to quit in the Conservative Party, Mrs May had no choice but to send most ministers out with the jobs they already had.
Only Liz Truss, who faced fury for failing to swiftly defend judges as Justice Secretary, had been demoted with most jobs announced.
She was named Chief Secretary to the Treasury, not a full Cabinet job.
Tonight Mrs May managed to head off the prospect of a leadership challenge as she apologised to a crunch meeting of backbench MPs.
She said “I got us into this mess, I’m going to get us out” as she vowed to help MPs who had lost their seats when she failed to win a majority.
