Cabinet reshuffle: Can Charles Clarke deliver?

Prime Minister Tony Blair has spent Thursday morning reshuffling his cabinet, with Charles Clarke becoming the highest profile name to switch jobs.

Mr Clarke replaces Estelle Morris as education secretary after she dramatically resigned on Wednesday.

He steps into a portfolio wracked by recent scandals, including the highly publicised A-level marking row.

Northern Ireland Secretary John Reid replaces Mr Clarke as party chairman, with Welsh Secretary Paul Murphy stepping into the role of Northern Ireland secretary.

What do you think of the new cabinet appointments? Can Charles Clarke deliver as education secretary?

This debate is now closed. Read a selection of your comments below.

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Your reaction

My impression is that Charles Clarke has better chance of being a successful secretary of state for education. Let him get on with the job of restoring the reputation of A-levels which has been dented not only in this country but also commonwealth countries as well.
Vijay K Vijayaratnam, United kingdom

Charles Clarke could usefully employ his abrasive style to get tough on antisocial pupils

Marco, UK

Charles Clarke could usefully employ his abrasive style to get tough on antisocial pupils. Teachers would warm to him, and middle class parents would be less paranoid about using the local school, if near perfect order was guaranteed in every classroom. We are too soft on unruly pupils who damage classroom learning for others. This is a political issue, a proper target for a charismatic political leader to build public opinion and then pass some laws to outlaw bad behaviour destroying education. Teachers are almost powerless to protect the learning environment at present, while car parking offences attract heavy fines. We need a change of priorities. Unleash Charles Clarke!
Marco, UK

Blair's babes? Ha where are they now?
Anon, UK

Come on, it is obvious: Tony is aiming to undermine the competition giving Charles Clarke a job in which he will fail, not because of his lack of ability, but because of what this department has become. When I was a young teacher, I used to substitute, or step in when a class was suddenly without a teacher. Some very unlucky classes are submitted to 3 or 4 teachers in a short space of time. When they reach teacher number 5, they are usually impossible to work with. It took me a year to establish acceptable working conditions in such a class. This is the situation anyone in charge of education is facing now, to the power of 10.
Anne Poitrineau, Sale, Cheshire

Estelle Morris has been praised as being more honest than a man would be. Perhaps she shouldn't be in Politics. That aside there remains a fundamental question which hangs around our education system - what do you want to educate our children for? Until you have solved that the system will run from crisis to crisis.
Tony, Welling, Kent.

The Blair government is systematically destroying state eduation in England. Charles Clarke will no doubt continue with the same disastrous policies. He will probably be more effective than Estelle Morris. The outlook for education in this country is bleak.
David, England

What the education department really needs is someone who is big enough to back off trying to run everything in minute detail, and who has the courage to leave the day-to-day running of the education system to the people who know best how to do it.
David Hazel, UK

This position seems very much like a poisoned chalice, I wish him all the best.
James Niclair, UK

Do we need a minister for education at all? Just give the schools the cash and leave them to it.
Chris, UK

The whole education system should never have become a political football

R Steward, UK

It's not a question of 'Can Clarke deliver?' The whole education system should never have become a political football anyway. Any sensible country would want the best education for its people anyway, so education should have been run by a continuing excellent professional service impervious to political manipulation.
R Steward, UK

Blair's at it again: let's try this, let's try that. No sense of direction - just a bit more shuffling around in the cabinet's unending game of musical chairs. Full marks to the PM for persistence - Blair steadfastly refuses to accept that he can't make a silk purse out of the sow's ear that comprises his government.
Chris B, England

Now we know the real reason Estelle resigned. It was the imminent publication of the damning report by the National Audit Office on the Individual Learning Accounts (ILA) Scheme. This will prove to be the final straw that broke the camel's back.
Ivan Woodhouse, UK

If Mr Clarke wants to deliver a teacher-focused and decentralised education department, he can do so and I would wish him well. If he fails to learn from his predecessor's mistakes and continues to politicise education and treat it as a pawn in an infantile class war, I suggest that he ask Ms Morris for a photocopy of her resignation.
Iain Robinson, UK

It's depressing to see so many people discuss education in terms of "Will this minister deliver?" or "Should that minister have resigned?" No politician can have much effect on education, because education depends so much on the quality and motivation of teachers. Half a century ago we had the best education system in the world, and most of it was done with blackboards and books, and with zero political interference. Today we have every piece of hi-tech you can think of, we had decades of educational experimentation, starting with Plowden, centralised teacher training, and an enormous amount of political and bureaucratic supervision and interference, and the system is has become a disaster. Aren't there some really obvious conclusions to be drawn here?
Jon Livesey, USA

Charles Clark will do a great job in this most contentious ministry

J Davey, England

Estelle Morris was right and brave to resign if she did not feel up to the job. This does not mean she is not a very able person or ministerial material. I also feel that Charles Clark will do a great job in this most contentious ministry and in my very humble opinion he will succeed Tony as leader of the Labour Party.
J Davey, England

My impression of Charles Clark is that he is a somewhat old fashioned type of politician, perceived as somewhat brash. As this is so different to the fresh approach of Estelle Morris, I don't think that he will get the support of teachers and, perhaps more importantly, the pupils.
David Ward, Brighton, East Sussex

Good luck to John Reid. He did a good job here and clearly Tony Blair thinks he's up to the task of his new role.
Thomas, NI, UK

Why do we have this perpetual round of ritual resignations when something goes wrong? Estelle Morris was actually the most experienced person for the job and in a position to really learn from her mistakes. Charles Clark will be starting from scratch.
Steve, UK

Steve: What perpetual round? Estelle Morris is the first minister for years to resign, as distinct from hanging on to office even after being totally discredited. Remember Byers, Mandelson, Davis et al?
David, Cambridge, UK

What on earth is Blair thinking by moving a competent Secretary of State from such a key job at such a crucial time for Northern Ireland?

Adrian M Lee, England

How can Clarke be any worse than his predecessor? Surely the real question form this reshuffle is what on earth is Blair thinking by moving an experienced and competent Secretary of State from such a key job at such a crucial time for Northern Ireland? For me Blair's judgement has always been suspect and this politically expedient gaffe just confirms it.
Adrian M Lee, England

Are any ministers able to stay in their posts long enough to make an impact? Is the real reason for the continual mess that government departments are in that they turn up, try to figure out what's going on, a "scandal" occurs and they resign or are shuffled ready for the next lamb to take their place? I don't have a huge amount of sympathy for the ministers as they (should) be intelligent enough to realise this is what happens. However, is it really a good way to run the country?
Simon, UK

How can Clarke be any worse than his predecessor? Surely the real question form this reshuffle is what on earth is Blair thinking by moving an experienced and competent Secretary of State from such a key job at such a crucial time for Northern Ireland?? For me Blair's judgement has always been suspect and this politically expedient but naive gaffe just confirms it.
Adrian M Lee, England

Teachers will soon regret Ms Morris leaving

James C, Midlands, UK

The teachers complained and moaned about Estelle Morris. Now she has gone they all seemingly regret her parting. The pressure on Ms Morris must have been unbearable, squabbling teachers whining about pay and conditions, chattering class parents carping on about exams, she must have felt like she was back in the classroom as a teacher while the unruly bleating pupils griped. Now the classroom has a new teacher, a hardliner, who all the "pupils" are likely to fear. Teachers will soon regret Ms Morris leaving.
James C, Midlands, UK

I have no advice for Charles Clark other than that he should spend what time is necessary to understand the problems of education before applying yet more quick fixes. I've no doubt he believes his previous stint in the education department qualifies him for the job but you have to remember that he's done little outside politics. I look forward to watching another rough ride on the education bucking bronco and perhaps an early faller at the first water jump.
John Brownlee, UK

Unless Mr Clarke is willing to change his general style he should prepare for another public sector to be driven to the brink of new strikes as he tries to force more rubbish down teachers' throats, while convinced that he is of course, right.
Flynn, England

He'll probably make an excellent minister, provided the media leave him to get on with the job as they should have done with Estelle Morris, instead of hounding her out of a job through the usual media feeding frenzy and witch hunt.
Simon, UK

My advice to Charles Clarke would be to write his resignation letter now but leave it unsigned for the moment.
R C Robjohn, UK