There will be a few exceptions for the most critical positions but otherwise, the rest will be told to use the Tube or bus. And why not? The ugly cuts are still to come but this was a no-brainer. It's not going to be popular with many of the ministers but for the voters who are about to tighten their belts, they will approve. Your bus is waiting, minister.
Just as the new ministers were learning to settle into the Jags' smart, upholstered seats, the coalition government announced today an end to one of the great Whitehall status symbols.
"In the future, no minister should have a dedicated car or driver other than in exceptional circumstances," the chief secretary to the Treasury, David Laws, said. "Ministers will be expected to walk or take public transport where possible, or use a pooled car."
Ministerial chagrin will be matched by the fury of the formidable phalanx of government drivers who have a reputation as the guardians of Whitehall's most intimate secrets. Ministers can glean vital gossip about cabinet reshuffles if they keep on the right side of their drivers, who form the most high-class grapevine in Britain as they wait in the Speaker's courtyard at Westminster while their charges vote in the Commons.
