After the 1999 Scottishdevolution, the powers of the Scottish Office were divided, with most transferred to the Scottish Government or to other British government departments, leaving only a limited role for the Scotland Office. From June 2003 and October 2008, the holder of the office of Secretary of State for Scotland also held another Cabinet post concurrently, leading to claims that the Scottish role was seen as a part-time ministry.
With the advent of legislative devolution for Scotland in 1999, the role of Secretary of State for Scotland was diminished. Most of the functions vested in the office since administrative devolution in the 19th century were transferred to the newly established Scottish Ministers upon the opening of the Scottish Parliament, or to other UK government ministers. However, the Secretary of State does represent Scotland in the Cabinet on matters that are not devolved to Holyrood and also holds Scotland Questions on the first Wednesday of every month between 11:30 am and 12 noon, when any Member of Parliament can ask a question on any matter relating to Scotland. However, devolved issues are not usually raised by MPs. The Secretary of State is also the group leader of the Scottish MPs from the government party.
As a result of this, the office mainly acts as a go-between for the UK and Scottish Governments and Parliaments.[3] However, due to the Secretary's position as a minister in the British government, the convention of Cabinet collective responsibility applies, and as such the post is usually viewed as being a partisan one to promote the UK government's decision-making in Scotland, as adherence to the convention precludes doing anything else.
With the rise of the Scottish National Party (SNP) in both the Scottish Parliament and the British Parliament and the resultant interest in Scottish Independence, the Secretary of State's role has also subsequently increased in prominence. The Scotland Office itself has received a cumulative increase in budget of 20% from 2013 to 2017, with a 14.4% increase in 2015/16 alone.[4]
The UK government's website lists the secretary of state for Scotland's responsibilities as being:
The main role of the Scottish Secretary is to promote and protect the devolution settlement.
Other responsibilities include promoting partnership between the UK Government and the Scottish Government, and relations between the 2 Parliaments.[3]
This seeming lack of responsibility has in recent years seen calls from opposition MPs for the scrapping of the role and the Scotland Office.[5][4] Robert Hazell has suggested merging the offices of Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales into one Secretary of State for the Union,[6] in a department into which Rodney Brazier has suggested adding a Minister of State for England with responsibility for English local government.[7]
The Secretary for Scotland was chief minister in charge of the Scottish Office in the United Kingdom government. The Scotland Office was created in 1885 with the post of Secretary for Scotland.[8] From 1892 the Secretary for Scotland sat in cabinet. The post was upgraded to full Secretary of State rank as the Secretary of State for Scotland in 1926.[9]
^"Rt Hon Bruce Millan". UK Parliament. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
^"Rt Hon Sir George Younger". UK Parliament. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
^"Rt Hon Sir Malcolm Rifkind QC". UK Parliament. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
^"Lord Lang of Monkton". UK Parliament. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
^"Lord Forsyth of Drumlean". UK Parliament. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
^"Rt Hon Donald Dewar". UK Parliament. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
^"Lord Reid of Cardowan". UK Parliament. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
^"Baroness Liddell of Coatdyke". UK Parliament. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
^"Lord Darling of Roulanish". UK Parliament. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
^"Rt Hon Douglas Alexander". UK Parliament. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
^"Lord Browne of Ladyton". UK Parliament. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
^"Rt Hon Jim Murphy". UK Parliament. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
^"Rt Hon Danny Alexander". UK Parliament. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
^"Rt Hon Michael Moore". UK Parliament. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
^"Rt Hon Alistair Carmichael MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
^"Rt Hon David Mundell MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 23 September 2017.
^"Mr Alistair Jack MP". UK Parliament. Retrieved 24 July 2019.
External linksEdit
Official website of the Scotland Office
September 27, 2023
secretary, state, scotland, confused, with, secretary, state, kingdom, scotland, secretary, state, scotland, scottish, gaelic, rùnaire, stàite, alba, scots, secretar, state, scotland, also, referred, scottish, secretary, secretary, state, government, united, k. Not to be confused with Secretary of State Kingdom of Scotland The secretary of state for Scotland Scottish Gaelic Runaire Staite na h Alba Scots Secretar o State fir Scotland also referred to as the Scottish secretary is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom with responsibility for the Scotland Office The incumbent is a member of the Cabinet of the United Kingdom Secretary of Statefor ScotlandScottish Gaelic Runaire Staite na h AlbaScots Secretar o State fir ScotlandRoyal Arms of His Majesty s Government in ScotlandIncumbentAlister Jacksince 24 July 2019Office of the Secretary of State for ScotlandStyleThe Right HonourableStatusSecretary of stateMinister of the CrownAppointerThe King on the advice of the Prime Minister Term lengthAt His Majesty s pleasureInaugural holderThe Earl of MarFormation1926 current form 1 May 1707 original form DeputyJohn Lamont as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State Salary 151 649 per annum 2022 1 including 84 144 MP salary 2 WebsiteScotland OfficeThe office holder works alongside the other Scotland Office ministers The corresponding shadow minister is the shadow secretary of state for Scotland The incumbent is Alister Jack following his appointment by Prime Minister Boris Johnson in July 2019 and who was reappointed by Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak Contents 1 History 1 1 Prior to devolution before 1999 1 2 After devolution since 1999 2 Responsibilities 3 List of Scottish secretaries 3 1 Secretaries of State for Scotland 1707 1746 3 2 Secretaries for Scotland 1885 1926 3 3 Secretaries of State for Scotland 1926 present 4 See also 5 Notes 6 References 7 External linksHistory EditPrior to devolution before 1999 Edit The post was first created after the Acts of Union 1707 created the Kingdom of Great Britain from the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland It was abolished in 1746 following the Jacobite rising of 1745 Scottish affairs thereafter were managed by the Lord Advocate until 1827 when responsibility passed to the Home Office In 1885 the post of Secretary for Scotland was re created with the incumbent usually a member of the Cabinet In 1926 this post was upgraded to a full Secretary of State appointment After devolution since 1999 Edit After the 1999 Scottish devolution the powers of the Scottish Office were divided with most transferred to the Scottish Government or to other British government departments leaving only a limited role for the Scotland Office From June 2003 and October 2008 the holder of the office of Secretary of State for Scotland also held another Cabinet post concurrently leading to claims that the Scottish role was seen as a part time ministry The current secretary of state for Scotland is Alister Jack who was appointed by Boris Johnson replacing David Mundell He was later reappointed by Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak Responsibilities EditWith the advent of legislative devolution for Scotland in 1999 the role of Secretary of State for Scotland was diminished Most of the functions vested in the office since administrative devolution in the 19th century were transferred to the newly established Scottish Ministers upon the opening of the Scottish Parliament or to other UK government ministers However the Secretary of State does represent Scotland in the Cabinet on matters that are not devolved to Holyrood and also holds Scotland Questions on the first Wednesday of every month between 11 30 am and 12 noon when any Member of Parliament can ask a question on any matter relating to Scotland However devolved issues are not usually raised by MPs The Secretary of State is also the group leader of the Scottish MPs from the government party As a result of this the office mainly acts as a go between for the UK and Scottish Governments and Parliaments 3 However due to the Secretary s position as a minister in the British government the convention of Cabinet collective responsibility applies and as such the post is usually viewed as being a partisan one to promote the UK government s decision making in Scotland as adherence to the convention precludes doing anything else With the rise of the Scottish National Party SNP in both the Scottish Parliament and the British Parliament and the resultant interest in Scottish Independence the Secretary of State s role has also subsequently increased in prominence The Scotland Office itself has received a cumulative increase in budget of 20 from 2013 to 2017 with a 14 4 increase in 2015 16 alone 4 The UK government s website lists the secretary of state for Scotland s responsibilities as being The main role of the Scottish Secretary is to promote and protect the devolution settlement Other responsibilities include promoting partnership between the UK Government and the Scottish Government and relations between the 2 Parliaments 3 This seeming lack of responsibility has in recent years seen calls from opposition MPs for the scrapping of the role and the Scotland Office 5 4 Robert Hazell has suggested merging the offices of Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Scotland and Wales into one Secretary of State for the Union 6 in a department into which Rodney Brazier has suggested adding a Minister of State for England with responsibility for English local government 7 List of Scottish secretaries EditSecretaries of State for Scotland 1707 1746 Edit John Erskine Earl of Mar had served as Secretary of State of the independent Scotland from 1705 Following the Acts of Union 1707 he remained in office The post of secretary of state for Scotland existed after the Union of the Parliament of Scotland and the Parliament of England in 1707 till the Jacobite rising of 1745 After the rising responsibility for Scotland lay primarily with the office of the Home Secretary usually exercised by the Lord Advocate Secretary of State Term of office nbsp John ErskineEarl of Mar since 1705 1 May 1707 3 February 1709 nbsp James Douglas2nd Duke of Queensberry 3 February 1709 6 July 1711 nbsp John ErskineEarl of Mar 9 September 1713 24 September 1714 nbsp James Graham1st Duke of Montrose 24 September 1714 August 1715 nbsp John Ker1st Duke of Roxburghe 13 December 1716 August 1725 nbsp John Hay4th Marquess of Tweeddale 25 February 1742 3 January 1746Office thereafter vacant Secretaries for Scotland 1885 1926 Edit The Secretary for Scotland was chief minister in charge of the Scottish Office in the United Kingdom government The Scotland Office was created in 1885 with the post of Secretary for Scotland 8 From 1892 the Secretary for Scotland sat in cabinet The post was upgraded to full Secretary of State rank as the Secretary of State for Scotland in 1926 9 From 1885 to 1999 Secretaries for Scotland and Secretaries of State for Scotland also ex officio held the post of Keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland 10 From 1999 the position of Keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland has been held by the First Minister of Scotland 11 Secretary of State Term of office Party Ministry nbsp Charles Gordon Lennox6th Duke of Richmond nb 1 17 August 1885 28 January 1886 Conservative Salisbury I nbsp George TrevelyanMP for Hawick Burghs 8 February 1886 March 1886 Liberal Gladstone III nbsp John Ramsay13th Earl of Dalhousie 5 April 1886 20 July 1886 Liberal nbsp Arthur BalfourMP for Manchester East 5 August 1886 11 March 1887 Conservative Salisbury II nbsp Schomberg Kerr9th Marquess of Lothian 11 March 1887 11 August 1892 Conservative nbsp George TrevelyanMP for Glasgow Bridgeton 18 August 1892 21 June 1895 Liberal Gladstone IVRosebery nbsp Alexander Bruce6th Lord Balfour of Burleigh 29 June 1895 9 October 1903 Conservative Salisbury III amp IV Con Lib U Balfour Con Lib U nbsp Andrew MurrayMP for Buteshire 9 October 1903 2 February 1905 Conservative nbsp John Hope1st Marquess of Linlithgow 2 February 1905 4 December 1905 Conservative nbsp John Sinclair1st Baron Pentland nb 2 10 December 1905 13 February 1912 Liberal Campbell BannermanAsquith I III nbsp Thomas McKinnon WoodMP for Glasgow St Rollox 13 February 1912 9 July 1916 LiberalAsquith Coalition Lib Con Lab nbsp Harold TennantMP for Berwickshire 9 July 1916 5 December 1916 Liberal nbsp Robert MunroMP for Roxburgh and Selkirk nb 3 10 December 1916 19 October 1922 Liberal Lloyd George I amp II Lib Con Lab nbsp Ronald Munro Ferguson1st Viscount Novar 24 October 1922 22 January 1924 Independent LawBaldwin I nbsp William AdamsonMP for West Fife 22 January 1924 3 November 1924 Labour MacDonald I nbsp John GilmourMP for Glasgow Pollok 6 November 1924 26 July 1926 inconsistent Unionist Baldwin IISecretaries of State for Scotland 1926 present Edit Secretary of State Term of office Party Ministry nbsp John Gilmour 12 MP for Glasgow Pollok 26 July 1926 inconsistent 4 June 1929 Unionist Baldwin II nbsp William AdamsonMP for West Fife 7 June 1929 24 August 1931 Labour MacDonald II nbsp Archibald Sinclair 13 MP for Caithness and Sutherland 25 August 1931 28 September 1932 Liberal National I N Lab Con Lib N Lib National II N Lab Con Lib N Lib nbsp Godfrey Collins 14 MP for Greenock 28 September 1932 29 October 1936 Liberal NationalNational III Con N Lab Lib N nbsp Walter Elliot 15 MP for Glasgow Kelvingrove 29 October 1936 6 May 1938 UnionistNational IV Con N Lab Lib N nbsp John Colville 16 MP for Midlothian and Peebles Northern 6 May 1938 10 May 1940 UnionistChamberlain War Con N Lab Lib N nbsp Ernest Brown 17 MP for Leith 14 May 1940 8 February 1941 Liberal National Churchill War All parties nbsp Thomas Johnston 18 MP for West Stirlingshire 8 February 1941 23 May 1945 Labour nbsp Harry Primrose6th Earl of Rosebery 25 May 1945 26 July 1945 Liberal National Churchill Caretaker Con N Lib nbsp Joseph Westwood 19 MP for Stirling and Falkirk 3 August 1945 7 October 1947 Labour Attlee I amp II nbsp Arthur Woodburn 20 MP for Clackmannan and Eastern Stirlingshire 7 October 1947 28 February 1950 Labour nbsp Hector McNeil 21 MP for Greenock 28 February 1950 26 October 1951 Labour nbsp James StuartMP for Moray and Nairn 30 October 1951 13 January 1957 Unionist Churchill IIIEden nbsp John Maclay 22 MP for West Renfrewshire 13 January 1957 13 July 1962 Unionist Macmillan I amp II nbsp Michael Noble 23 MP for Argyllshire 13 July 1962 16 October 1964 UnionistDouglas Home nbsp Willie Ross 24 MP for Kilmarnock 18 October 1964 19 June 1970 Labour Wilson I amp II nbsp Gordon CampbellMP for Moray and Nairn 20 June 1970 4 March 1974 Conservative Heath nbsp Willie RossMP for Kilmarnock 5 March 1974 8 April 1976 Labour Wilson III amp IV nbsp Bruce Millan 25 MP for Glasgow Craigton 8 April 1976 4 May 1979 Labour Callaghan nbsp George Younger 26 MP for Ayr 5 May 1979 11 January 1986 Conservative Thatcher IThatcher II nbsp Malcolm Rifkind 27 MP for Edinburgh Pentlands 11 January 1986 28 November 1990 ConservativeThatcher III nbsp Ian Lang 28 MP for Galloway and Upper Nithsdale 28 November 1990 5 July 1995 Conservative Major IMajor II nbsp Michael Forsyth 29 MP for Stirling 5 July 1995 2 May 1997 Conservative nbsp Donald Dewar 30 MP for Glasgow Anniesland 2 May 1997 17 May 1999 Labour Blair I nbsp John Reid 31 MP for Hamilton North and Bellshill 17 May 1999 25 January 2001 Labour nbsp Helen Liddell 32 MP for Airdrie and Shotts 25 January 2001 13 June 2003 Labour Blair II nbsp Alistair Darling 33 a MP for Edinburgh South West b born 1953 13 June 2003 5 May 2006 LabourBlair III nbsp Douglas Alexander 34 a MP for Paisley and Renfrewshire South 5 May 2006 28 June 2007 Labour nbsp Des Browne 35 c MP for Kilmarnock and Loudoun 28 June 2007 3 October 2008 Labour Brown nbsp Jim Murphy 36 MP for East Renfrewshire 3 October 2008 11 May 2010 Labour nbsp Danny Alexander 37 MP for Inverness Nairn Badenoch and Strathspey 12 May 2010 29 May 2010 Liberal Democrat Cameron Clegg Con L D nbsp Michael Moore 38 MP for Berwickshire Roxburgh and Selkirk 29 May 2010 7 October 2013 Liberal Democrat nbsp Alistair Carmichael 39 MP for Orkney and Shetland 7 October 2013 8 May 2015 Liberal Democrat nbsp David Mundell 40 MP for Dumfriesshire Clydesdale and Tweeddale 11 May 2015 24 July 2019 Conservative Cameron IIMay IMay II nbsp Alister Jack 41 MP for Dumfries and Galloway 24 July 2019 Incumbent Conservative Johnson IJohnson IITrussSunakNotes a b Concurrently served as Secretary of State for Transport MP for Edinburgh Central until 2005 MP for Edinburgh South West thereafter Concurrently served as Secretary of State for DefenceSee also EditFirst Minister of Scotland Secretary of State a senior post in the pre Union government of the Kingdom of Scotland Under Secretary of State for Scotland junior minister supporting the Secretary of State for Scotland Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland Secretary of State Jacobite Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Secretary of State for WalesNotes Edit Duke of Lennox in the peerage of Scotland MP for Forfar until 1909 created Baron Pentland 1909 MP for Wick Burghs until 1918 MP for Roxburgh and Selkirk thereafterReferences Edit Salaries of Members of His Majesty s Government Financial Year 2022 23 PDF 15 December 2022 Pay and expenses for MPs parliament uk Retrieved 15 December 2022 a b Secretary of State for Scotland GOV UK www gov uk Retrieved 16 January 2017 a b SNP questions budget of zombie department Scotland Office STV News Retrieved 16 January 2017 BBC NEWS UK Scotland Scrap Scotland Office SNP urging news bbc co uk 25 November 2007 Retrieved 16 January 2017 Times letters Mark Sedwill s call for a cull of the cabinet The Times ISSN 0140 0460 Retrieved 30 November 2020 Rodney Brazier Why is Her Majesty s Government so big UK Constitutional Law Association 7 September 2020 Retrieved 30 November 2020 Secretary for Scotland Act 1885 section 2 Secretaries of State Act 1926 Secretary for Scotland Act 1885 section 2 Secretaries of State Act 1926 section 1 Scotland Act 1998 section 45 7 Mr John Gilmour Parliamentary Debates Hansard Retrieved 24 September 2017 Sir Archibald Sinclair Parliamentary Debates Hansard Retrieved 24 September 2017 Mr Godfrey Collins Parliamentary Debates Hansard Retrieved 24 September 2017 Mr Walter Elliot Parliamentary Debates Hansard Retrieved 24 September 2017 Mr John Colville Parliamentary Debates Hansard Retrieved 24 September 2017 Mr Ernest Brown Parliamentary Debates Hansard Retrieved 24 September 2017 Mr Thomas Johnston Parliamentary Debates Hansard Retrieved 24 September 2017 Mr Joseph Westwood Parliamentary Debates Hansard Retrieved 24 September 2017 Mr Arthur Woodburn Parliamentary Debates Hansard Retrieved 24 September 2017 Mr Hector McNeill Parliamentary Debates Hansard Retrieved 24 September 2017 Hon John Maclay Parliamentary Debates Hansard Retrieved 24 September 2017 Mr Michael Noble Parliamentary Debates Hansard Retrieved 24 September 2017 Mr William Ross Parliamentary Debates Hansard Retrieved 24 September 2017 Rt Hon Bruce Millan UK Parliament Retrieved 23 September 2017 Rt Hon Sir George Younger UK Parliament Retrieved 23 September 2017 Rt Hon Sir Malcolm Rifkind QC UK Parliament Retrieved 23 September 2017 Lord Lang of Monkton UK Parliament Retrieved 23 September 2017 Lord Forsyth of Drumlean UK Parliament Retrieved 23 September 2017 Rt Hon Donald Dewar UK Parliament Retrieved 23 September 2017 Lord Reid of Cardowan UK Parliament Retrieved 23 September 2017 Baroness Liddell of Coatdyke UK Parliament Retrieved 23 September 2017 Lord Darling of Roulanish UK Parliament Retrieved 23 September 2017 Rt Hon Douglas Alexander UK Parliament Retrieved 23 September 2017 Lord Browne of Ladyton UK Parliament Retrieved 23 September 2017 Rt Hon Jim Murphy UK Parliament Retrieved 23 September 2017 Rt Hon Danny Alexander UK Parliament Retrieved 23 September 2017 Rt Hon Michael Moore UK Parliament Retrieved 23 September 2017 Rt Hon Alistair Carmichael MP UK Parliament Retrieved 23 September 2017 Rt Hon David Mundell MP UK Parliament Retrieved 23 September 2017 Mr Alistair Jack MP UK Parliament Retrieved 24 July 2019 External links EditOfficial website of the Scotland Office Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Secretary of State for Scotland amp oldid 1176800071, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
