As the federal cabinet end of year reshuffle nears this week, only one key ministerial name has been leaked: Education Minister Dan Tehan.
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Senior public servants, meanwhile, are on high alert for a departmental secretary reshuffle, just one year after the last significant shake-up of top officials.
The Canberra Times has been told to watch for announcements of new roles for Attorney-General's Department secretary Chris Moraitis, Defence secretary Greg Moriarty and Home Affairs secretary Mike Pezzullo.
The Office of the Special Investigator also needs to be filled, and the government has reportedly had difficulty finding a senior judicial figure with the necessary experience.
No machinery of government changes are expected to accompany the reshuffle.
That Mr Tehan will move from education to trade is seen as so near a certainty that officials in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet have been preparing for the shift without even disguising the minister's identity.
"I'll continue to focus on the education portfolio from now until the end of the year," Mr Tehan responded to the leak in a radio interview last week.
"Those decisions are left up to the Prime Minister, and I'll leave it to him to make them, and just continue to do my job to the best of my ability."
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Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton has been a frequent target for interviewers giving voice to speculation that he is destined for the defence portfolio.
"He's the boss, right? So, you do as he says," responded Mr Dutton last week when asked if he'd accept Mr Morrison moving him.
"I think John Howard used to say that this is the toughest of decisions as a leader, because we bat pretty deep. We've got a lot of good people on the backbench that could be on the frontbench, but equally we've got a lot of talent on the frontbench, including the Defence Minister [Linda Reynolds]."
The Prime Minister has done little to dampen speculation that the defence portfolio is still in play, including allowing criticism of Senator Reynolds' handling of the Brereton report on alleged war crimes hang in the air uncontested in an interview with Ray Hadley.
"I understand your point Ray. I understand it," Mr Morrison replied.
Harley Dennett
Former federal politics bureau chief for the Canberra Times, via a career that's taken me from rural Victoria to Washington DC. Telling the stories of my local LGBTI community brought me to political journalism, where I've covered eight budgets, four national elections in two countries, Defence, public service and international governance.
Former federal politics bureau chief for the Canberra Times, via a career that's taken me from rural Victoria to Washington DC. Telling the stories of my local LGBTI community brought me to political journalism, where I've covered eight budgets, four national elections in two countries, Defence, public service and international governance.
