About bloody time, considering how unweildy the department has evidently become.

The big question (other than what the hell are the precisely plans?) is, why let the news slip out at 9pm on a Saturday night? Wouldn’t this count as the sort of major reform that eveyone’s been saying is needed for ages, and that could get the government a bit of good will back – especially needed following yesterday’s “cash for peerages” arrest of one of Tony Blair’s senior aides? Why bury it at a weekend?

Still, sounds like it’ll be worth getting the Sunday Telegraph tomorrow to see what [tag]John Reid[/tag]’s got to say for himself… Is this another case of “I’m not going for the Labour leadership, no siree…”? (Especially as Gordon Brown’s out of the country, so will be unable to hit back straight away…)

Sunday update: Reid outlines his plans in the Telegraph. Well, I say “outlines his plans” – it’s more an extended apologia and self-justification, with very little in the way of concrete proposals for how to actually implement a break-up. Still, apparently Support grows for Home Office split, because good old Charlie “I know little and care less about how the British constitution functions” Falconer (aka Tony Blair’s ex-flatmate, aka the Lord Chancellor, aka the Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs) is lending his considerable weight to the idea.