Ministerial shake-up leaves Premier Miller in a stronger position

Prime Minister Leszek Miller announced a Cabinet reshuffle yesterday, promoting key allies in a bid to restore growth, create jobs and win a European Union entry referendum this year. Miller fired his Privatization and Economy Ministers, completing a shake-up which begun with a change of Finance Minister six months ago. The outgoing Treasury Minister Wieslaw Kaczmarek, criticized for footdragging on privatization will be replaced by Soviet-trained economist Slawomir Cytrycki, and Labour Minister Jerzy Hausner takes on the job of the Economy Minister Jacek Piechota, whose plans to restructure the coal industry collapsed after miners' protests. Hausner thus becomes the head of a "superministry" which consists of a merger of the Economy and Labour Ministries. "I hope that the further process of privatization will be accelerated...and will be less politicized," Miller told a hastily-called news conference. The Prime Minister also promoted his Cabinet Chief Lech Nikolski to full ministerial rank, tasking him with winning an EU referendum in June and demoting current campaign chief Slawomir Wiatr. (Reuters; Puls Biznesu, pp. 1,2,3; Parkiet, p. 1) J.K.