Liberal Democrat MP Michael Moore sacked as Scottish Secretary Liberal Democrat Michael Moore has been sacked as Scottish Secretary in a reshuffle. The party's chief whip Alistair Carmichael was appointed to the post on Monday. Mr Moore's departure came as Prime Minister David Cameron is poised to reshuffle junior Conservative ministers after the resignations of Cabinet Office Minister Chloe Smith and Deputy Chief Whip John Randall. Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg said "different experience" was required in the run-up to the independence referendum. He told Mr Moore he was going to be axed on Friday, Mr Clegg's letter revealed. Mr Clegg said Mr Moore became Scottish Secretary at a "critical time" in the country's relationship with the rest of the UK and "managed the challenges of the situation with great skill and effectiveness." He added: "As we discussed when we spoke on Friday, I believe we now need to draw on different experience in the final year running up to the referendum itself and I am keen that, just as we have benefited from your formidable skills over the past three years, that we take advantage of other experience within our ranks during this period. I am immensely grateful for all the work you have done at the Scotland Office and for the very significant contribution you have made to the first coalition government in 70 years. I have no doubt that there will be an opportunity for your talents to be deployed in government in the future. Mr Moore replied: "This has been, and will continue to be, a hugely important time in Scottish politics and that has made it a challenging and rewarding time to be Secretary of State for Scotland." He continued: "In leaving the Scotland Office I am pleased that Alistair will be succeeding me. As a good friend and long-time colleague, I believe he will do a superb job. I wish him all the best. The 48-year-old MP for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk was appointed Scottish Secretary in May 2010. He had overseen the introduction of the Scotland Act (2012) which gave the Scottish Parliament further devolved powers on tax and fiscal issues. Recently, Mr Moore had backed the Better Together campaign for the No vote in next year's independence referendum. He previously featured in an STV debate with Deputy SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon on independence. His replacement Mr Carmichael was elected MP for Orkney and Shetland in 2001 and was appointed deputy leader of the Lib Dems last year. Scottish Lib Dem leader Willie Rennie said: "Mike Moore is leaving on a high after three very good years as Scottish Secretary. He persuaded the nationalist Government to approve the Scotland Act they previously condemned as a poison pill. Against the odds he secured an agreement with the nationalists on the conduct of the referendum. Mike Moore repeatedly outwitted Alex Salmond. As we move to the next stage of the campaign, I am looking forward to working with Alistair Carmichael. His feisty style, combined with his charm, wit and intelligence, is just what we need for the last 12 months in our efforts to safeguard our partnership with the rest of the United Kingdom. SNP Westminster leader Angus Robertson MP said: "Michael Moore was a courteous opponent, and he can take pride in the constructive role he played in the negotiation of the Edinburgh Agreement, which helped paved the way for next year's independence referendum. I wish him well for the future. Nicola Sturgeon bested Mr Moore in a Scottish Television referendum debate earlier this year, and the fact that the case for Yes has now prevailed over No in a series of broadcast debates may have played a role in what can only be viewed as a panic reaction by the UK Government in sacking him. He added: "Embarrassingly for the UK Government, the new Secretary of State for Scotland believes in the abolition of his post and entire department. He called the continued existence of the Scotland Office post-devolution 'indefensible' - we agree, and trust that Alistair Carmichael will stand by the trenchant views he expressed before the Lib Dems jumped into coalition with the Tories. Mr Carmichael's new role in the 'indefensible' Scotland Office is presumably to help spread more scare stories about Scotland and independence - something the Tories must have believed Michael Moore wasn't sufficiently adept at or committed to. In any event, this panic reaction by Westminster indicates serious problems in the No campaign - which appointing someone to the post who believes the post should be abolished will do nothing to solve.