Cabinet Reshuffle in Britain

Date: July 13, 1962 • Location: London, United Kingdom

In an unprecedented reshuffle, British prime minister Harold Macmillan (pictured) dismissed seven members of his cabinet.

A cabinet reshuffle or shuffle in Canadian usage, occurs when a head of government rotates or changes the composition of ministers in their cabinet, or when the head of state changes the head of government and a number of ministers. They are more common in parliamentary systems than in systems where cabinet heads must be confirmed by a separate legislative body, and occur frequently in autocratic systems.