David Cameron's thoughts turn to reshuffle as parliamentary recess begins Given the lack of wriggle room involved, on top of the premature departures of two of the party's secretaries of state (David Laws and Chris Huhne), there is unlikely to be much of a change of yellow personnel. Vince Cable (Business), Danny Alexander (Chief Secretary to the Treasury), Ed Davey (Energy), Michael Moore (Scotland) and of course Nick Clegg (Deputy Prime Minister) can all probably rest easy, or at least contemplate a new role rather than departure from Cabinet altogether. Then there is the complicating factor of last week's backbench rebellion over reform of the House of Lords, when more than 90 Tories defied the whip. Denying all of them a place in government means that the potential for finding places in the junior ministerial ranks for fresh young talent from the 2010 intake is curtailed. But Mr Cameron is keen to boost the number of Tory women in government, and a loyal few, including Claire Perry, Amber Rudd and Margot James, may yet make the cut. When it comes to the Cabinet, the Prime Minister may find it easy enough to prune some of the dead wood in the lesser offices. Wales Secretary Cheryl Gillan is not thought to be long for this world - Maria Miller, currently a Work and Pensions minister, could get the call up to replace her. Caroline Spelman has long been regarded as an under-performer as Environment Secretary, while their failure to deliver the votes on Lords reform could spell the end for both Sir George Young as Leader of the House and Patrick McLoughlin, the Chief Whip. There are suggestions too that Francis Maude may not be safe at the Cabinet Office, while Baroness Warsi's recent difficulties mean that Mr Cameron may want a safer pair of hands as Party Chairman. So who would replace them? One easy move for the Prime Minister would be to shuffle Justine Greening away from Transport and into another role. Her opposition to the third runway at Heathrow has become a frustration for the Coalition's leadership, but Mr Cameron continues to respect her talents and intelligence. While he enjoys having Ken Clarke around from a personal point of view, it is clear that the old stager's views on a range of issues - particularly Europe and the Human Rights Act - are so far from those of the mainstream party that even he would not be surprised if his time was up at the Department of Justice. In the era of Coalition, however, his unorthodox opinions might make him a natural as Leader of the House. To fill the remaining gaps, Mrs Miller's DWP colleague Chris Grayling, Grant Shapps, the Housing Minister, and Nick Herbert, the Police Minister, could all finally receive the promotions their supporters argue they deserve. Much of the rest of the reshuffle depends on the Olympics. While no home secretary finds the post smooth sailing, the mess involving Olympic security, which last week saw 3,500 extra troops drafted in to cover for the failings of the contractor G4S, means that Theresa May could be under pressure. A quiet summer and peaceful Games should see her secure in her position - but Michael Gove, the Education Secretary, is waiting in the wings if not. If the Olympics do go badly, then Jeremy Hunt would surely be for the heave-go at the Department for Culture, Media and Sport. On the BBC's Andrew Marr Show yesterday he made an impassioned plea to remain at his post after the Games to continue to deal with the "legacy." But his torrid time over the BSkyB deal means there are many who believe he will be shuffled off, perhaps with his blushes spared by having his department split up post-Games and its functions redistributed. There are some suggestions that Mr Hunt could re-emerge as Party Chairman, with a new brief to take on some of the role of election planning from George Osborne. And what of the Chancellor? Is he entirely safe? Reports have been swirling in the last few days that the "omnishambles" that was the last budget has led Mr Cameron to think the unthinkable and consider moving the man who as much as himself has shaped the current Conservative Party. Speculation this weekend focused on the idea that Mr Osborne could be persuaded into a job swap with William Hague, the Foreign Secretary, much as James Callaghan and Roy Jenkins did (in their case between the Treasury and Home Office) in 1967. It would be a bold and even ruthless move, and one which temperamentally would not sit well with Mr Cameron, who above all prizes friendship and loyalty. Most Westminster insiders believe this nuclear option remains unlikely for September. But if Britain loses its triple A rating, if the economy continues to fail to respond to Mr Osborne's Plan A of austerity measures by later in the autumn and, most importantly, if the Prime Minister's own position begins to appear under threat as a result, it remains a card he may yet play. A second game of snakes and ladders, this time bringing in the the very top of the ministerial tree, could begin all over again before the end of the year.