Cabinet Reshuffle Timing

Well, I'm very disappointed. It was David Thompson in 1978. Muldoon had, Muldoon, well, Norman Kirk always said about Muldoon that my ambitions and Mr. Muldoon's ambitions don't coincide. I want to be prime minister. He wants to be government. And indeed, between 75 and 78, he was... quite unconstitutionally prime minister. And also Minister of Finance, but he was also Minister in charge of the legislative department or leader of the House. But by 1978, a few people like Hugh Templeton got into Muldoon's mind to create a separate office and it was David Thompson. And it's grown in importance over the years. So it's the manager of government business in the House. And I thought Chris was doing it reasonably well. So I imagine there was an element of sticking it. taking it to him and taking it away from him, but it does free him up to be the attorney and to also concentrate on what is going to be a big mark against his career, and that is the passage of the RMA legislation, probably one of the most important pieces of legislation that this House will see. Other aspects, and I know I'm going on and on, I do apologise, but I have to tell you other aspects of the reshuffle i have no idea what was going on it exemplifies the fruit salad approach you stick your fork in and you pull out a portfolio and randomly give it to someone so how on earth uh poor goldsmith is minister for pacific peoples i have no idea and to give the energy portfolio to an already overworked simeon brown uh is is madness in my view because as we discussed with the royal commission there's a huge there's a huge amount of work that has to be done on for the for the present but also the future pandemic preparation and to load energy onto the poor devil uh it just seems to be an act of of uh massacre well not massacre what's the opposite well whatever it is it is sadism but it's pretty cruel stuff in my