Howell stays in reshuffle
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DAVID HOWELL was still at the wheel at the Department of Transport this week following Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's reshuffle.
Mr Howell, appointed Transport Secretary in September 1981, had been widely tipped for the sack, but he appears to have been saved by Mrs Thatcher's wish to limit the reshuffle to the absolute minimum following the departure of Sir John Nott from the Ministry of Defence.
Mr Howell has been accident prone ever since he entered the Cabinet after the last election, with his latest slip up occuring at the Tory Party Conference in October when his prepared text included a reference to his plans to raise gross lorry weights to 38 tonnes, even though he failed to include the paragraph in his speech.
At the time, his colleagues were convinced that such a blunder was likely to see him out of the Government at the first opportunity. But the fact thatg the Government eventually had a comfortable majority may well have swung Mrs Thatcher's decision.
In the Lords Lord Lucas of Chilworth hassucceeded the Earls of Avon as transport spokesman.