Scottish Government | |
---|---|
Scottish Gaelic: Riaghaltas na h-Alba Scots: Scots Govrenment | |
![]() | |
Overview | |
Established | 1 July 1999 |
Country | Scotland |
Leader | First Minister (John Swinney) |
Appointed by | First Minister approved by Parliament, ceremonially appointed by the monarch |
Main organ | Scottish Cabinet |
Responsible to | Scottish Parliament |
Annual budget | £59.7 billion (2024–25)[1] |
Headquarters | St Andrew's House 2 Regent Road Edinburgh EH1 3DG |
Website | www |
This article is part of a series within the Politics of the United Kingdom on the |
Politics of Scotland |
---|
![]() |
The Scottish Government (Scottish Gaelic: Riaghaltas na h-Alba, pronounced [ˈrˠiə.əl̪ˠt̪əs nə ˈhal̪ˠapə]) is the devolved government of Scotland.[2] It was formed in 1999 as the Scottish Executive following the 1997 referendum on Scottish devolution.[3] Its areas for responsibility of decision making and domestic policy in the country include the economy, education, healthcare, justice and the legal system, rural affairs, housing, the crown estate, the environment, the fire service, equal opportunities, the transportation network, and tax, amongst others.[4][5]
The Scottish Government consists of the Scottish Ministers, which is used to describe their collective legal functions. The Scottish Government is accountable to the Scottish Parliament, which was also created by the Scotland Act 1998 with the first minister appointed by the monarch following a proposal by the Parliament. The responsibilities of the Scottish Parliament fall over matters that are not reserved in law to the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
Ministers are appointed by the first minister with the approval of the Scottish Parliament and the monarch from among the members of the Parliament. The Scotland Act 1998 makes provision for ministers and junior ministers, referred to by the current administration as Cabinet secretaries and ministers, in addition to two law officers: the lord advocate and the solicitor general for Scotland. Collectively the Scottish Ministers and the Civil Service staff that support the Scottish Government are formally referred to as the Scottish Administration.