Cabinet shuffle

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In the parliamentary system a cabinet shuffle is an informal term for an event that occurs when a Head of Government rotates or changes the composition of ministers in his or her cabinet.

Commonly, a cabinet shuffle refers to certain ministers being shifted from one portfolio to another. Cabinet shuffles happen as periodically moving ministers is often necessary to replace ministers that have resigned due to scandal or retired. Forming cabinets is also one of the most important ways for a head of government to reward or punish supporters, a practice that leads to shuffles whenever a new faction within a party takes over.

Cabinet shuffles are far less common in systems where members of the Cabinet are not drawn from the legislative branch. For instance in the United States it would very unusual for a president to reassign all the cabinet secretaries to new positions. It does occasionally happen on an individual basis however, for example former Secretary of Transportation Norman Mineta previously served as Secretary of Commerce before being reshuffled (see List of US Cabinet Secretaries who have held multiple cabinet positions).

In the UK the process is known as a reshuffle, and occurred most recently on May 5, 2006, when several major Government offices were reassigned following Labour losses in the 2006 local elections.