Not a continuity cabinet: Swinney signals change with familiar faces

This is not a continuity cabinet. Yes, seven of its nine members were already there but everyone except the first minister has a new job.

The big clear out came at the election when ministers stood down or lost their seats.

As a result, portfolios have been reorganised to allow John Swinney to appoint a smaller team.

For me, the most striking change is that Ivan McKee has been promoted to Cabinet and put in charge of public service reform.

This is a subject about which he is passionate. He hates waste and inefficiency and is likely to push for significant change.

This is important given that financial watchdogs have repeatedly warned that public spending is on an unaffordable trajectory.

Unchecked, they calculate that a £5bn spending gap would open up in the Scottish government's finances over the next few years.

That cannot actually happen because the Scottish government is required to balance its budget each year.

McKee will have an important role in resolving this issue, at a time when the Scottish government is making further spending commitments on childcare and bus fare caps.

There is much talk of reducing the number of public bodies, reducing the size of the public service workforce and embracing new technology including AI.

The direct entry to cabinet for the SNP's former Westminster leader Stephen Flynn also feels significant.

Putting this ambitious politician into power will keep him busy and bound by the collective responsibility of being in Swinney's government.

That means he has to go along with the decisions it takes, even if he privately disagrees.

Being in cabinet will also allow him to demonstrate his leadership capabilities should he want to stand for that position at some point in the future.

As economy secretary he is likely to champion the oil and gas industry within government although he does not have direct responsibility for energy policy.

If the apparent softening by Swinney of the Scottish government's opposition to new drilling was to become a formal policy shift, few would be happier than Flynn.

Someone seen as his key rival to replace Swinney in the years ahead - Màiri McAllan - remains in government having been switched from housing to education secretary.

For a while, she was seen as the most obvious choice for deputy first minister - a role she did not secure.

I don't think she has fallen out of favour but as a younger member of the team she is perhaps seen as having plenty of time to grow in government.

Instead it was Jenny Gilruth who was elevated to the deputy first minister position.

There were signs she was on the way up during the election campaign, not least when she was chosen to introduce Swinney at the SNP's manifesto launch.

As deputy first minister, it seems she will now share responsibility with the first minster for putting the party's policy promises into practice.

As a former teacher, Gilruth has plenty of experience in checking on progress, marking homework and keeping others focused on the task in hand.

These are skills she may need to draw upon as a deputy first minister and finance secretary who has said she will dedicate herself to delivering.

The finance part of the job puts her in charge of devolved taxation and spending - an exceptionally challenging role at a time when cash is becoming tighter.

International conflict is driving up the cost of energy here which could soon cause price rises across the economy, making her task even more difficult.

Swinney praised Gilruth for avoiding strikes as education secretary. Faced with demands for increased pay from across the public services, it may not be possible for her to keep everyone happy.

The former MP Stephen Gethins who has considerable experience in international politics lost out on cabinet rank.

The role he was most obviously suited for - constitution, external affairs and culture - has been abolished.

However, he has been given responsibility for Europe and external affairs with energy added on as a minister within John Swinney's office - a decent consolation.

Swinney is personally taking responsibility for constitutional matters including the pursuit of independence while culture has been added to the education secretary's brief.

Gethins is not the only former MP to find his way into government as a minister below cabinet level. Alison Thewliss and Kirsten Oswald have been given jobs too.

Jamie Hepburn has been allowed to return to government as parliamentary business minister after an altercation with the former Conservative leader Douglas Ross forced him to resign.

The brand new MSP for Shetland, Hannah Mary Goodlad, has gone straight into government as public finance minister.

She has a background in the energy sector and is seen within the SNP as a rising star.

There is nothing in the new cabinet line up that impresses the SNP's political opponents.

Labour said "the same failed ministers are simply being shuffled around the table with one joker being added to the deck" in an apparent reference to Stephen Flynn.

The Conservatives complained of a "chronic lack of talent".

The personnel are certainly familiar to those who watch politics closely but my sense is that in designing this government, Swinney is signalling considerable change to come.