Appointment of two Scottish Green Members of the Scottish Parliament: FOI release

Information requested

In anticipation of the appointment of two Scottish Green Members of the Scottish Parliament as Junior Ministers you queried whether the First Minister would in turn remove two existing Ministers from her ministerial team. 

Response

The numbers of Ministers prior to the recent Scottish Parliament election and since then is as follows:

• Immediately prior to the May 2021 election, the Scottish Ministers comprised: the First Minister, 11 Cabinet Secretaries, 15 junior Ministers, and the 2 Scottish Law Officers – that is, a total of 29;
• Following the May 2021 elections, the First Minister was appointed alongside 9 Cabinet Secretaries (a reduction of 2), 15 junior Ministers (the same number), and the 2 Scottish Law Officers (as required under the Scotland Act) – a total of 27;
• Following the conclusion of the Co-operation Agreement between the Scottish Government and the Scottish Green Party Parliamentary Group, the Scottish Ministers comprised: the First Minister, 9 Cabinet Secretaries, 17 junior Ministers, and the 2 Scottish Law Officers – that is, a total of 29.

The overall number of Ministers has therefore not increased since the elections to the Scottish Parliament in May 2021.

The Scottish Government does not hold information on the cost of appointment of Ministers: Ministerial and MSP salaries are set and paid by the Scottish Parliament and the Scottish Government has no role in this. Salaries are agreed by the whole Parliament in line with proposals put forward by the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body.

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