The future of several old-guard National MPs looks bleak after Simon Bridges' caucus reshuffle saw him reward up-and-coming MPs, 1 NEWS' Katie Bradford says.
Several National MPs were dropped from prominent Ministerial portfolios they held in government, along with a slide down the party rankings.
Most noticeable among those was Gerry Brownlee, who lost Foreign Affairs, and Nick Smith, who lost Conservation, after already losing Environment following the 2017 election.
"That's really no surprise given they have been around a long time," Bradford told TVNZ 1's Breakfast.
"Simon Bridges, what he needed to do with this was come in and make a mark, show that he's the new leader, this is a new-look National.
"If they're going to take on the government they've got to think like they're in opposition now, they've got to look like they're in opposition, they've got to look like they're a new team going into 2020."
The new National leader has garnered attention for promoting former leadership rivals within his new caucus.
Some National MPs who somewhat unexpectedly held onto to their high profile portfolios were Jonathan Coleman and Nikki Kaye - considering her public support for Amy Adams' leadership run.
"I think there's some surprise for instance that Jonathan Coleman's kept health," Bradford said.
"He was highly criticised for his handling of health when he was minister, a lot of people didn't expect him to keep it.
"But I think when Simon Bridges looked at that he went 'well, who else am I going to put there, who knows it better than Jonathan Coleman?'
"So I think, the same with Gerry Brownlee, you do need to keep some of those more experienced faces in there, because they need that support behind them, you need people in there who know those portfolios.
"Gerry Brownlee won't be happy he lost Foreign Affairs for instance."
However, Brownlee is still Shadow Leader of the House.
Bradford said the four big losers of the caucus reshuffle: Gerry Brownlee, Nick Smith, David Carter, Chris Finlayson, will all be thinking about their futures.
Judith Collins is the big winner, taking on housing and urban development.
Brownlee and Smith may stay on for this term because they hold electorate seats, Bradford said, but she would not be surprised in Carter and Finlayson announce their resignations in the coming months.
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