I think it was one of the Godfather movies where I first heard the line: "Keep your friends close - and your enemies closer."
Last night's Cornwall Council cabinet reshuffle, announced on Twitter (surely a first?), breaks this golden rule of politics and demonstrates that when I forecast a job for Fiona Ferguson I was completely wrong.
The creation of four new Cabinet Support Members - three Conservatives and one Independent - suggest to me that the Indies have been bought rather cheaply. The 3-1 ratio does not reflect political balance either in the council or the 3-2 balance in the former cabinet.
We don't yet know how much these new posts are going to cost in terms of extra responsibility allowances. Council leader Alec Robertson has suggested there might be no cost at all, as a result of savings elsewhere. But ultimately it looks as if the total spend on members will have to go up, while that on professional staff is going down.
Tuesday's full council meeting will be fascinating.
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