City minister Mark Hoban took up a new job in the work and pensions ministry, with Cameron drafting London Olympics organiser and former Goldman Sachs banker Paul Deighton into the Treasury as a minister responsible for economic delivery.
The Conservative leader also moved 72-year-old Justice Secretary Ken Clarke - a former chancellor - to a floating role with an economics brief. Clarke's move, in effect a demotion for one of the most outspoken pro-Europe Conservatives, was cheered by the euro sceptics.
"The end of the coalition would have been the ideal reshuffle but, compared to where I thought we would be today, we are in a very much stronger position; you can see the Conservative-ness of this government," said Conservative lawmaker Peter Bone.
"We've seen a tilting towards a more Conservative cabinet."
Lib Dem David Laws, another respected economic brain, was brought in to a ministerial job, with a junior portfolio at the education ministry alongside a roving economics remit.
The biggest promotion came for former Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt, who took over what he called the "huge task" of selling controversial plans for reforms at the health ministry to a sceptical public and medical profession.
Cameron switched Justine Greening from transport to international development, removing her from the debate over whether the government should build a third runway at London's Heathrow airport, bitterly opposed by residents in her nearby parliamentary constituency.
The move reignited speculation that a third runway - which the coalition has pledged to reject - could be on the cards.
"There can be only one reason to move her, and that is to expand Heathrow airport. We will fight this all the way," said Mayor of London Boris Johnson, a popular Conservative tipped as a future replacement for Cameron.
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