The move to Telecommunications Minister can be seen as a promotion for party loyalist Michael Scott who has until now had a junior role in the cabinet, serving under the Attorney General.

Generally seen as a nice guy Mr. Scott's appointment to Alex Scott's cabinet reflected the keenness to keep Jennifer Smith loyalists on board after the post election coup ousted her.

He took the Legislative Affairs brief in an effort to take some of the load off Paula Cox who also had the Education portfolio and a busy career in the corporate world.

Mr. Scott hoped the role could be grooming him for the post of Attorney General.

But when Paula Cox got the Finance post when her father died, Mr. Scott was leapfrogged by Larry Mussenden who had only spent a few months in the Senate.

When first appointed to the Cabinet Mr. Scott said it was the Attorney General's job to advise the Government on legal matters while the Legislative Affairs Minister drafted laws and moved them to the floor of the House.

However he has not been a noticeable success in that role.

Opposition politicians have repeatedly complained about the slow pace of legislation reaching Parliament.

And the recent bill to abolish gaming machines had to be substantially amended on the floor of the House after loopholes were spotted which could have ended up with every computer on the island becoming contraband. Now in his mid-50s the youthful looking Mr. Scott fought several elections unsuccessfully before being appointed to the Senate in 1998 where he often took a backseat while more forthright Government Senators such as Col. Burch weighed in.

Mr. Scott remains popular in the party, particularly in his native Somerset where his grass roots appeal helped him pick up the Sandys North nomination when Mr. Cox died.

Now with a safe seat and a new post all of his own Mr. Scott might at last feel free to grab some of the limelight in his new post at Telecommunications which is shortly to grapple with the potentially thorny issue of data protection.