Here's what you need to know about who is new and who has moved in David Cameron's cabinet reshuffle
Jeremy Hunt
Was: Culture secretary
Is: Health secretary
Hunt has had a mixed year following near-scandal over his handling the handling of Rupert Murdoch's bid for control of BSkyB, and the national celebration of the Olympics and Paralympic games
• A contemporary of David Cameron and London mayor Boris Johnson at Oxford University, where he got a first in PPE
• Hunt survived weeks of high pressure over his job after it emerged his aide was in close contact with Murdoch's News Corporation throughout the BSkyB bid – during which time he became one of the few people allowed by the Speaker to be called a "liar" in parliament
• Hunt made himself a millionaire by setting up educational publisher Hotcourses, but had to repay nearly £2,000 in expenses for his constituency home claimed while he was living in central London
• The father of two is (distantly) related to British fascist party founder Oswald Mosley and the Queen
• He is a keen dancer of the South American zouk-lambada, and has a ballroom at his Surrey home to practise
Chris Grayling
Was: Employment minister
Is: Justice secretary
Grayling's demotion from shadow home secretary to employment minister was probably the biggest demotion after the general election, but he is seen as having made a great success of the job
• Despite being a former member of the Social Democratic party, which later merged with the Liberal party to form the Liberal Democrats, Grayling is seen as a strong voice on the right of the Tories
• After becoming an MP in 2001, Grayling earned a reputation as an attack dog for his challenging of two Labour secretaries of state who later resigned: David Blunkett and Stephen Byers
• Grayling's fall after the election was blamed on a controversy in the weeks before voting when a recording emerged of him saying that Christian owners of bed and breakfasts should be allowed to prevent gay couples from staying in their homes
• After the election is he also said to have riled Cameron by being very blunt with him about why the party didn't win a majority
• He was known as Chris "Graything" at Cambridge, where he studied history
Ken Clarke
Was: Justice secretary
Is: Minister without portfolio
Clarke, 72, has served on every Conservative government front bench since Ted Heath was prime minister in 1972, and is currently Lord Chancellor and secretary of state for justice.
• Has held two of the four great offices of state: chancellor and home secretary
• The Tory party website boasts that when Clarke was chancellor from 1993-1997 "Britain recovered from recession and was set on a course of economic growth with low inflation … the budget deficit was halved and interest rates and unemployment fell."
• Easily the most leftwing member of the current cabinet; if he left there is a danger the prime minister would take up that position
• The brown suede-shoe wearing former barrister and QC famously stayed in B&Bs with his wife Gillian during party conferences, creating the image of a man of the people
• One of the few politicians who might be as well known for his hobbies as his career: jazz, birdwatching and motor racing
Lady Warsi
Was: Conservative party chairman
Is: Senior minister of state at the Foreign Office and minister for faith and communities
Sayeeda Warsi was appointed co-chairman of the Conservative party with Lord Feldman and a minister without portfolio in the coalition cabinet in May 2010. She was demoted from her position as co-chair of the party in the September 2012 reshuffle and offered a position at the Foreign Office with a seat in the cabinet
• Warsi was the first female Muslim to serve as a minister in the UK.
• She has never won an election, having lost her only attempt to win a seat in the Commons, standing for Dewsbury at the 2005 election when she was the first Muslim woman to be selected by the Conservatives. She was appointed to the House of Lords in 2007.
• Warsi has never been far from controversy. She was accused of pandering to the BNP in 2007 when she said immigration had been out of control and was making people "uneasy". But she strongly criticised the BNP when she appeared opposite party leader Nick Griffin on a controversial edition of Question Time in 2009. And last year she warned that Islamophobia has "passed the dinner-table test" and become widely socially acceptable in Britain.
• In February this year, Warsi warned that Britain is under threat from a rising tide of "militant secularisation", writing in the Daily Telegraph: "You cannot and should not extract these Christian foundations from the evolution of our nations any more than you can or should erase the spires from our landscapes."
• Warsi was found guilty of a "minor" breach of the ministerial code in June this year after failing to give a full account to officials of her family links to a businessman who accompanied her on an official visit to Pakistan. The independent adviser on ministerial interests indicated that no action should be taken against Warsi and David Cameron issued a statement of support, describing her as "a great asset".
Maria Miller
Was: Disabilities minister
Is: Culture secretary
Although she has been a junior minister for disabled people at the Department for Work and Pensions, Miller is one of the women in government said to have most impressed the party leadership
• Miller's appearance on BBC Question Time in May fuelled speculation she is being lined up for the job of Welsh secretary, especially as it was hosted in the Welsh capital, Cardiff
• Although commonly said to have been born in Wales, Miller was actually born near Wolverhampton but went to school at Brynteg comprehensive school in Bridgend, before university at the London School of Economics
• The Wolverhampton MP lists education and "local environmental improvements" as her two chief political interests
• In February, the minister said that there was "no shortage of jobs" and blamed unemployment on "a lack of an appetite for some jobs" although at the time there were nearly six unemployed claimants for every advertised job vacancy
• In her Conservative party profile, Miller, a mother of three, highlights the importance of her experience as a "working mother", and in the advertising and marketing business, to her political work
Owen Paterson
Was: Northern Ireland secretary
Is: Environment secretary
As Northern Ireland secretary Paterson oversaw publication and delivery of the Saville report on the events of Bloody Sunday, which led to David Cameron's historic apology for the actions of British soldiers
• Paterson read history at Cambridge University, before joining his family leather business, becoming managing director in 1994
• He served as shadow minister for agriculture between 2005 and 2006, during which he campaigned for greater action to combat bovine TB and also promoted the UK's dairy industry.
• Paterson reportedly "pleaded" for the government to fast-track a third runway at Heathrow airport, at a cabinet meeting shortly before the summer recess
• He is a Eurosceptic and a member of the rightwing Cornerstone group, which campaigns for traditional Tory values
• Paterson was the first member of Cameron's cabinet to declare his opposition to the prime minister's plan to legalise gay marriage
Patrick McLoughlin
Was: Chief whip
Is: Transport secretary
Patrick McLoughlin has had a tough time as chief whip since the coalition government took power in 2010. The biggest backbench rebellion came in July when 91 Conservative MPs defied a three-line whip to vote against House of Lords reform.
• McLoughlin worked as a coal miner for six years, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather. He was a member of the National Union of Mineworkers but was one of only six Staffordshire miners to break the strike in the 1980s
• He succeeded Matthew Parris as MP for West Derbyshire with a majority of just 100 in a 1986 byelection, a victory he describes as his proudest political achievement
• McLoughlin spent three years as a parliamentary under-secretary of state at the Department of Transport, between 1989 and 1992
• He is said to be from the left of the party and reportedly used to call the Thatcherite "no turning back" group the "don't turn your back" group
• McLoughlin clashed with the speaker in the Commons in 2010, accusing John Bercow of bias towards Labour. As he tried to leave the chamber Bercow told him he had "no business whatsoever shouting from a sedentary position" before ordering McLoughlin to stay in the Commons
Justine Greening
Was: Transport secretary
Is: International development secretary
Greening had been widely expected to be moved from the department of transport as a result of her steadfast opposition to a third runway at Heathrow
• At the time of her election to the Commons in 2005, Greening was the youngest female Conservative MP
• Her win in Putney, Roehampton and Southfields was the party's first on 2005 election night in 2005. Michael Howard paid her a congratulatory visit the following day when he also announced his intention to stand down as Conservative party leader
• Greening was ranked as the 9th best value for money MP in research carried out by thinktank the Adam Smith Institute, and of all her expenses claims she was the 599th lowest out of the 645 MPs
• Last week she threatened to resign if a third runway was built, saying it would be "difficult" for her to stay in the cabinet if it went ahead. She ran a local campaign against the runway at the last election
• She has participated in the Conservative Party's social action programme in Rwanda
Andrew Lansley
Was: Health secretary
Is: Leader of the Commons
The health secretary pushed through the government's most controversial and risky legislation so far, the health and social care bill, and is said to be the only man in the UK who understands the resulting shakeup of the NHS
• Lansley's sincere interest in the NHS is credited with helping the Tories detoxify the issue before the 2010 general election
• In his book on the health debacle, Nick Timmins claims Lansley was "largely excluded" from top level drafting of the bill, adding: "He saw a draft. He objected. But according to officials and special advisers, he was ignored"
• Lansley, 55, was once the boss of David Cameron and George Osborne at the Conservative party research office
• He is from a family steeped in public service: his father worked for the NHS, his brothers are a teacher and a policeman
• Aged 35, Lansley had a minor stroke while playing cricket which was originally misdiagnosed as an ear infection: he lost the fine balance needed for skiing or tightrope walking, but it had no effect on daily life
Grant Shapps
Was: Housing minister
Is: Conservative party chair and minister without portfolio
Shapps is one of the golden boys of the Conservative party – or was until claims this week he is linked to a company which profits from breaching Google's code of conduct on advertising
• The housing minister has thrived, although private and social house building has failed to recover during his two years in the job
• Shapps describes himself as a social justice politician and has long researched and campaigned on the causes of homelessness, including sleeping rough on Christmas eve 2007
• After studying business at Manchester polytechnic, Shapps founded a printing shop which grew into a national company
• During the 2009 expenses scandal, the Daily Telegraph described Grant, who won the Welwyn Hatfield seat off Labour in 2005, as an "expenses saint"
• Father of three Shapps has survived a week-long coma after a car crash, and cancer
Andrew Mitchell
Was: International development secretary
Is: Conservative chief whip
As secretary of state for international development, Mitchell could boast that his department is the only one not to suffer a budget cut, though he has been tough in axing aid to richer nations such as Russia and China. He has been now been appointed chief whip in the Commons.
• The son of a former Tory MP lost his original seat, Gedling in Nottinghamshire, in the 1997 Labour landslide, returning to parliament in 2001 as MP for Sutton Coldfield
• He ran the unsuccessful leadership campaign for David Davis, which the rightwing MP lost to David Cameron in 2005
• During that campaign he struck up an unlikely friendship with Cameron's campaign manager, George Osborne
• Mitchell, 56, served with the Army's Royal Tank Regiment and spent time as a UN Peacekeeper in Cyprus
• The Cambridge graduate was one of 186 MPs who voted for the restoration of the death penalty in 1994; 383 MPs voted against
Caroline Spelman
Was: Environment secretary
Is: TBC
As environment secretary Spelman has presided over one of the government's most humiliating U-turns over the proposed sale of national forests. With a Lib Dem at the other key environment department – energy and climate change – Spelman has also fielded much flak over the coalition's failure to deliver on Cameron's lofty promise to be the "greenest government ever". As one commentator noted before her departure was announced, the only thing helping her cling to the seat was that she was Mrs Spelman, not Mr
David Jones
Was: Second minister in the Welsh office
Is: Welsh secretary
David Jones, MP for Clywd West, replaces Cheryl Gillian as Welsh secretary after being promoted from the position of Wales office minister, which he held from 2010. He is not a particularly well-known name outside of Westminister but there had been pressure from Conservatives for Gillian's replacement to be an MP holding a Welsh seat
• Jones was a member of the Welsh Assembly, representing north Wales, between 2002 and 2003
• He was elected to parliament in 2005, his third attempt, having previously contested Conwy in 1997 and the city of Chester in 2001
• Jones describes his political interests as the environment, law and order and constitutional affairs
• In his maiden speech in the Commons, Jones bemoaned the fact that residents' representations on windfarms were "largely irrelevant" under the current planning regime. He also complained that his constituents had "suffered ... at the government's hands through the ban on fox hunting"
• Jones is an active blogger and writes one of the most popular political blogs in Wales
Theresa Villiers
Was: Transport minister
Is: Northern Ireland secretary
During her time as transport minister, Theresa Villiers was outspoken against expansion of south-east airports, instead supporting high-speed rail links, views that put her at odds with many Tories. By contrast, Owen Paterson, who she replaces as Northern Ireland secretary, is said to be in favour of a third runway at Heathrow
• Villiers is from an aristocratic background with historical political connections, being descended on her father's side from the Honourable Edward Ernest Villiers
• She was a eurosceptic member of the European Parliament, representing London between 1999 and 2005 when she was elected as an MP for Chipping Norton. Throughout her time in Brussels, she was an opponent of Britain's entry into the Euro, the European Constitution and other attempts to expand the powers of the EU
• After just seven months in parliament she was appointed as shadow chief secretary to the treasury, working alongside George Osborne on developing Conservative economic policy
• In April, while transport minister, she ruled out a third runway, despite indications that the government was softening its policy on the matter. The following month, she said BAA was however free to make the case for it
• During the MPs' expenses scandal, the Daily Telegraph reported that Villiers claimed almost £16,000 in stamp duty and professional fees on expenses when she bought a London flat, even though she already had a a house in her north London constituency of Chipping Barnet, which is just over 14 miles away from the Houses of Parliament
Michael Fallon
Was: Conservative party co-chairman
Is: Minister in business department
Fallon, the deputy chairman, is one of the most experienced men in government, having served under Margaret Thatcher and John Major previously
• The Sevenoaks MP's title belies his importance as the de facto minister for the Today programme (on BBC Radio 4), and other broadcast programmes, where he is regularly used by Downing Street to argue the government's case
• Fallon was MP first in Darlington from 1983 to 1992, losing his seat to Labour minister Alan Milburn
• Before returning to parliament in 1997 he was director of three companies set up by Dragons' Den TV star Duncan Bannatyne
• Despite formally retiring from the frontbench in 1998 due to ill health, Fallon goes to the morning planning meetings in Downing Street each day – making him a firm insider
• Scottish-born Fallon (middle name Cathel) was campaigning against the burgeoning of quangos as early as 1978, long before most politicos were even aware of them
David Laws
Was: Backbencher
Is: Education minister
Laws has been in semi-exile since he stood down as chief secretary to the Treasury after just a few weeks in the job because of a scandal over claiming expenses to rent a room from his male partner
• Laws said he did not benefit financially from the arrangement, and only carried on because he had not wanted to make his sexuality public
• After a double first in economics from Cambridge, Laws worked for city bankers JP Morgan and Barclays de Zoete Wedd – before giving up his six-figure salary to work for the Liberal Democrats for £15,000 a year
• Laws was co-editor of and contributor to the controversial Orange Book which set out a very economically liberal agenda for choice and competition in public services
• The Yeovil MP, who replaced Paddy Ashdown, was one of the four key negotiators of the coalition agreement with the Conservatives after the general election in 2010, later writing up his experiences in the book 22 Days in May
• Laws was once offered a seat in the Conservative shadow cabinet by George Osborne, because his views were considered too rightwing for his own party
Cheryl Gillan
Was: Welsh secretary
Is: TBC
Gillan began to pen her own resignation letter after she made it clear she would be prepared to leave government to fight plans for the High Speed 2 railway to go through her constituency of Chesham and Amersham; reshuffling her out of the cabinet avoids either an embarrassing exit when the final plans are published next year, or more expensive concessions to Gillan and other opponents. Without an opportunity to shine politically, and as she is not a Welsh MP, Gillan was an easy target to create a space