Rosemary Butler was sacked this week as education secretary, and opposition parties had questioned how someone fresh out of a Labour cabinet could remain politically neutral as deputy presiding officer.
The appointment of Egemen Bagis, a sharp young English-speaker, as Turkey's first cabinet-rank EU negotiator suggests that Mr Erdogan may make a fresh effort to put the EU talks back on track.
You should always reshuffle your cabinet on a nice, Spring day when the sun is shining, a good time for a fresh start - or so said an adviser to Carwyn Jones a few months ago.