Early Oil on the New NSW Cabinet

The Sun-Herald's Alex Mitchell has just appeared on ABC 702 with some early details of the new NSW Cabinet, which will be finalised at caucus this morning and sworn in on Monday. Even though I find Mitchell a noxious worm, his information tends to be pretty sound.

Here's what we're looking at:

• John Watkins to retain Transport and pick up Finance, as a counterbalance to the Right's Michael Costa retaining Treasury


• John Hatzistergos to take Attorney General, to the surprise of absolutely no one


• David Campbell, currently best known as Minister for Water, for Police - a major step upwards for a Minister whose rise has already been pretty swift


• John Della Bosca to replace Carmel Tebbutt in Education


• Reba Meagher to take Health (and, I would have to assume, dropping her other demanding portfolios)


• New Left recruit Nathan Rees to replace Kerry Hickey in Local Government
  


• Kristina Keneally to be promoted to a portfolio as yet unknown (I've been predicting her elevation since the last major reshuffle) for an unknown portfolio (perhaps Di Beamer's former portfolio of Fair Trading?)


• Matt Brown, also strongly rumoured, and also to take an unknown portfolio (perhaps Aboriginal Affairs?)

In addition to these, I would suggest Linda Burney for Reba Meagher's former portfolio of Community Services. The race for the new Environment, Climate Change and Water portfolio seems wide open - it seems inconceivable that such a prominent portfolio would be given to a new Minister, but Phil Koperberg's name seems to be coming up in connection with it more consistently than with the more obvious choice of Emergency Services.

All (well, most) will be known later today.