Liz Truss has narrowed down which minister will get the NHS hot potato to two names.
She is now deciding whether the crucial job of Health Secretary should go to her leadership campaign manager and Welfare Secretary Therese Coffey if Ms Truss wins the keys to No10 on Monday
Or whether Chancellor Nadhim Zahawi would be a better bet after presiding over the hugely successful vaccine rollout.
Her dilemma comes as NHS leaders warn today that the health service is facing an even bigger catastrophe than Covid.
NHS Confederation boss Matthew Taylor said: “The NHS is in the grip of a crisis that we haven’t seen for decades.
“We’ve been experiencing winter levels of demand in summer and the situation will become even tougher when we hit winter.”
NHS leaders are now demanding a massive injection of cash to make up for the £9.4billion being lost to inflation.
There are 6.7 million people waiting for routine care, 132,000 NHS job vacancies and heart attack and stroke patients face an hour wait for an ambulance instead of the 18 minute target.
Royal College of Nursing chief Pat Cullen said: “The NHS is close to collapse.
“Ambulances piling up, waiting lists through the roof and nursing staff on their knees is the nightmare reality in our NHS.”
Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng is now nailed on as Ms Truss’s Chancellor with Education Secretary James Cleverly taking over her old job at the Foreign Office.
Priti Patel is tipped to lose the Home Office with Attorney-General Suella Braverman replacing her.
There will be a job for leadership challenger Tom Tugenhat either at the Home or Foreign Office while Ben Wallace stays at Defence.
Ms Truss’s leadership rival Penny Mordaunt is said to be unhappy with the offer of Armed Forces minister.
After holding the top job at Defence herself she thinks it would be a comedown to become Mr Wallace’s deputy.
Another leadership contender, Kemi Badenoch,is being pencilled in for Transport while Michelle Donelan, Education Secretary for 48 hours under Boris Johnson before quitting, is set to go back there.
That means Cabinet ministers Domiminc Raab, Grant Shapps, Steve Barclay and George Eustice are all likely to get the chop.
