Premier Alex Scott not only made the right choice in asking Paula Cox to succeed her late father as Finance Minister, he made the only choice that he could.

The only other Minister genuinely qualified for the post would have been Terry Lister, but he was effectively barred due to his wife?s chairmanship of the Bermuda Monetary Authority. Even for Bermuda that would have been too much of a conflict of interest.

Even without that problem, Ms Cox would have been the first choice for the post because of her own qualifications and private sector experience and her track record as a Minister.

Her record as a centrist politician who seeks advice from a wide circle and then makes good decisions makes her the ideal candidate for this challenging post and it is no surprise that the business community has endorsed it.

Ashfield DeVent?s appointment as Works and Housing Minister is more surprising.

The former radio court reporter has had a meteoric rise since winning the by-election for the late David Allen?s Pembroke East Central seat, becoming a Minister without Portfolio after the July General Election and now getting one of the most challenging jobs in the Cabinet.

Since Mr. Scott became Premier, Mr. DeVent has been a troubleshooter and a go-between between the Cabinet Office and the departments which fall under it, so Mr. Scott has no doubt had a chance to see Mr. DeVent in action.

There is no question that Mr. DeVent has been very loyal to former Premier Jennifer Smith and to Mr. Scott, and this is his reward. But some backbenchers, not to mention former Ministers, will no doubt be irritated that their service has not been recognised in the same way.

Still, Mr. DeVent, in the memorable phrase of former British Transport Minister Stephen Byers, may have thought of two words ? poison and chalice ? when he was handed Works and Housing. Much as the Government would wish it, the scandals over the Housing Corporation and Berkeley are still present. How Mr. DeVent handles them will make or break his career.

He could take some advice from Mr. Lister, who is all too familiar with difficult portfolios and now inherits the one that has ended more political careers than any other. Indeed, Ms Cox is one of the few recent Ministers to come through the experience of being Education Minister with an intact political future. Where are Milton Scott, Jennifer Smith, Tim Smith and Jerome Dill now?

Now Mr. Lister, having experienced his share of controversy in Government Services, Home Affairs and Works and Engineering, moves on to Education in what is becoming his own personal trip through Dante?s nine circles of Hell.

Since this is his third job in less than six months, he deserves to stay there for a while. Improving educational standards is a slow process. If he can cut through the bureaucracy and obsession with education fads that has bedevilled this Ministry he has a chance to make a lasting contribution to Bermuda?s youth.

Sen. Larry Mussenden?s appointment to the post of Attorney General is only surprising because of his lack of political experience. While Sen. Michael Scott has deputised for the Attorney General in the past, Sen. Mussenden?s prominence as a courtroom lawyer and his own time in the AG?s chambers earned him the post.

Still, Sen. Mussenden himself would probably admit that there are a good many lawyers in private practice who have decades more experience than he does. And were it not for his lawyer?s qualification, he would probably admit that it is unlikely that he would find himself in the Cabinet today.

In the absence of someone of the stature of Lois Browne Evans, the Government faces a growing problem in appointing a ?political? Attorney General. Since Ms Cox is the only PLP MP who is a lawyer, this post is now essentially an appointed office, since the Government must appoint a Senator to it.

The final surprise was the shuffle that did not happen. There was widespread speculation that Renee Webb would lose the tourism portfolio after making a series of statements outside of Government policy and then facing an unprecedented protest from her own civil servants.

She has survived, but did not receive much of an endorsement from Mr. Scott. However, the Premier will also be loath to be seen allowing the civil servant tail to wag the ministerial dog, and may also be unwilling to move Ms Webb out of Tourism to make way for Dr. Ewart Brown, who has made little secret of his desire for that job ? and Mr. Scott?s as well.