Jacqui Smith expected to go in Cabinet reshuffle
The West Midlands could lose its most senior Cabinet Minister when Gordon Brown attempts to rebuild his Government with a reshuffle.
Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary and MP for Redditch, is expected to be demoted or sacked as the Prime Minister lines up the team which will take Labour into the next election.
She could be one of the high-profile victims of the expenses scandal, following controversy over her use of her sister’s London property as her main home, which allowed her to claim expenses on her “second home” in Redditch which she shares with her family.
Other senior Ministers likely to face the axe or demotion include Chancellor Alistair Darling, and Local Government Secretary Hazel Blears.
Both have been embroiled in the expenses affair, with Mr Darling announcing that he will repay some of his expenses, following allegations that he claimed on two homes at once.
The Prime Minister appeared to signal their death warrants yesterday, when he was asked whether Mr Darling and Ms Blears would be in the Cabinet at the time of the next election. He said: “They’re doing a good job but I’m not going to make any predictions about anything that is going to happen in the next week.”
