LONDON -- Prime Minister Boris Johnson began a long-anticipated shake-up of his Cabinet on Wednesday -- demoting his top diplomat and firing his education minister -- in a move designed to revitalize a government whose popularity now appears to be waning.
In the biggest move, Johnson demoted Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, whose position has been considered tenuous after widespread criticism of his handling of the evacuation from Afghanistan. His standing was further diminished by his decision to delay returning from vacation in Greece as the Taliban took control of Kabul last month.
Raab was appointed justice secretary with the added title of deputy prime minister. Despite the grand title, that is a demotion -- the deputy has no formal constitutional role.
The new foreign minister is ex-International Trade Secretary Liz Truss, a favorite of the Conservative Party's grassroots who has won praise for her work negotiating trade deals with Australia and Japan since Britain left the European Union last year. Truss, who is Britain's second female foreign secretary, will also remain minister for women and equalities.
Anne-Marie Trevelyan replaced Truss as minister for international trade.
There were no other changes to the top four Cabinet posts, with Rishi Sunak remaining Treasury chief and Priti Patel staying as Home Secretary. Defense Secretary Ben Wallace also kept his job. He has been praised for his work overseeing the evacuation of thousands of British citizens and their Afghan allies from Kabul last month.
Health Secretary Sajid Javid, who has a key job leading Britain's pandemic response, also stayed in his post.
Johnson fired Education Secretary Gavin Williamson, who has been criticized for his performance during the pandemic, which has seen long periods of school closures, sudden policy shifts and the cancellation of major college entrance exams for two years in a row.
Williamson was replaced by Nadhim Zahawi, who has served as vaccines minister and is responsible for inoculating the country against the coronavirus.
Michael Gove, a longtime ally and sometime rival of Johnson, was appointed Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government. The department is key to Johnson's aim of "leveling up" the U.K., spreading prosperity beyond the wealthy south that is the traditional Conservative heartland. That promise helped Johnson win a big election victory in 2019 by gaining votes in Labor Party-dominated parts of the north of England.
Critics have complained of a lack of clarity over the government's main domestic promise.
Nadine Dorries was promoted to lead the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, a position that will see her grapple with thorny issues such as the future of the publicly funded BBC. An outspoken politician who has often made headlines, Dorries has criticized "left-wing snowflakes," and in 2012 was suspended by the Conservative Party for taking time off from her job as a lawmaker to appear on the reality TV show "I'm a Celebrity ... Get Me Out of Here," filmed in Australia.
Johnson last made big changes in his Cabinet soon after his December 2019 election victory, when he sidelined lawmakers considered insufficiently loyal or lukewarm in their support for Brexit. That left him with a strongly pro-Brexit top team, but critics say it left many ambitious and competent lawmakers out of the government.
Opponents of Johnson's Conservative government say that lack of depth has shown as the U.K. confronted the aftershocks of its departure from the EU along with the public health crisis of the coronavirus pandemic and its resulting economic blows. Britain has recorded more than 134,000 covid-19 deaths, the highest toll in Europe after Russia.
Downing Street confirmed the shake-up in a statement but did not provide any further details.
"The Prime Minister will today conduct a reshuffle to put in place a strong and united team to build back better from the pandemic," a spokesperson said.
The Cabinet shuffle is due to continue today.
Tuesday, Johnson laid out his plans for combating the virus as the winter approaches, saying Britain would offer vaccine booster shots to people aged 50 and older, and first shots to children who are 12 to 15 years old. His government is determined to avoid a further lockdown but could resort to measures such as mask mandates if infections surge.
After a successful beginning to Britain's vaccine program earlier this year, Johnson's Conservatives surged in the opinion polls, but that lead now appears to be evaporating. Last week, Johnson took a gamble by breaking an election promise not to raise taxes so that he could allocate more cash to health and social care.
Information for this article was contributed by Jill Lawless and Pan Pylas of The Associated Press and by Stephen Castle and Mark Landler of The New York Times.