Paul Murphy was the one major move of July's reshuffle, after he was promoted from the Northern Ireland Office to become Welsh secretary.

Mr Murphy succeeded Alun Michael, now first secretary of the National Assembly for Wales, in a role which has been much diminished by devolution.

However, Mr Murphy remains Wales' voice in the Cabinet and in Parliament and he ensures the interests of Wales are considered when government policy is developed at Westminster. The Welsh secretary is also given the budget for Wales by Parliament, which he then passes on to the assembly.