Salary and costs for the Cabinet Office assigned to the Minister for Independence: FOI release

Information requested

The monthly/annual running costs for the Cabinet Office assigned to the Minister for Independence. Broke down into following.

1. Minister’s salary.
2. Staff(s) salary.
3. Estimated office costs (office space and relevant office supplies, running costs for phones/postage and equipment).

Response

1. While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance, the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested. This is because the Scottish Parliament is responsible for the payment of salaries for MSPs and members of the Scottish Government. These arrangements are made under the Scottish Parliament Salaries Scheme. They apply from 1 April 2023 and more information is available here. This is a formal notice under section 17(1) of FOISA that the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested.
2. The private office staff work flexibly across portfolios. However, the Minister for Independence currently has one Private Secretary at B2 equivalent grade. The pay scale for grade B2 Civil Service is from £33,120 - £37,936.
3. While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested. This is because costs are collated across the Ministerial Private Office Division and not by individual office. This is a Formal notice under section 17(1) of FOISA that the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested.

About FOI

The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at http://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.