The DUP now referred to as some, as the 'Doubling Up Party' continues in its attempts to refresh its image in the eyes of the electorate by promising to phase out the practice. On the heels of a disastrous showing at the European elections, the DUP has announced the following changes to its Stormont team:

Sammy Wilson replaces Nigel Dodds as Finance Minister
Edwin Poots replaces Sammy Wilson as Environment Minister
Nelson McCausland becomes the new minister for Culture, Arts and Leisure
Robin Newton replaces Jeffrey Donaldson as Junior Minister
Arlene Foster continues as minister for the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Investment

The new DUP Ministers will take up their posts after the Assembly's current term end later this month (June 09) giving the outgoing Ministers an opportunity to brief their replacements.

Likewise in a reshuffle of Chairmanships held by the DUP, the party announced the following changes:

Jim Wells replaces Iris Robinson as chair of the Health Committee
Ian Paisley Jr replaces William McCrea as chair of the Agriculture Committee
Simon Hamilton replaces David Simpson as chair of the Social Development Committee

Editorial

Well the DUP have decided to change, but are they changing because they believe its the right and proper thing to do, or are they changing because of disastrous election results. The practice of double or even triple jobbing is an obscene thought to most, yet it continues. At present the DUP has members who are MP's, MLA's and Councillors and if Sammy Wilson is added to the mix, Ministers as well. They employ at public expense close family members and expensed items they later had a change of heart about and repaid them. Their efforts to date have been described by the Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV)  leader Jim Allister as 'nothing more than a rearranging of the deckchairs on the Titanic', and for the moment one can do little, but agree.