Edinburgh South MP Ian Murray sacked from government, then brought back after backlash
Ian Murray's sacking as Scottish Secretary in Friday's reshuffle came as a shock - not least to Ian Murray himself.
During Labour’s darkest days in Scotland, the Edinburgh South MP kept the party's flag flying as its only MP north of the border from 2015 until 2017 and from 2019 until 2023.
Appointed Scottish Secretary after Labour's general election triumph last year, he worked enthusiastically to show what a UK Labour government could do for Scotland.
Yet on Friday his reward was to be shown the door, to be replaced by Douglas Alexander. Mr Murray reportedly received the news in a telephone call from the Prime Minister while he was attending the official launch of the "Maroon Mile" Hearts heritage trail.
A friend was quoted saying Mr Murray was "very angry" and "still in the dark" about why he had been sacked.
He issued a statement saying he was "hugely disappointed" at leaving the government "with so much done and so much more to do".
Others were also shocked and angry. Labour peer and former Lothian MSP George Foulkes called the sacking a "disgraceful decision". Other MPs said Mr Murray's efforts were why Labour had won 37 Scottish seats at the general election.
And the backlash seems to have had an effect. On Saturday night came an apparent change of heart when it was announced that Ian Murray had been appointed as Minister of State jointly in the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology. He'll no longer be in Cabinet, but at least he will still have a ministerial role.
The reshuffle, which involved major job swaps in some of the biggest posts, was obviously sparked by the forced resignation of Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner over her underpayment of stamp duty. Keir Starmer had reportedly been planning a reshuffle in the autumn but brought it forward due to Ms Rayner's departure.
Apart from the backlash over Mr Murray's sacking, it seemed to go smoothly, which is not always the case with reshuffles.
It's not unknown for ministers to refuse the roles they're being offered, try to dig their heels in or even quit in protest, which can force sudden rethinks and leave governments looking chaotic.
It's more unusual to have sacked ministers brought back by the clamour of others.