Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjacent islands, principally in the archipelagos of the Hebrides and the Northern Isles. To the south-east, Scotland has its only land border, which is 96 miles (154 km) long and shared with England; the country is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, the North Sea to the north-east and east, and the Irish Sea to the south. The population in 2022 was 5,439,842 and accounts for 8% of the population of the UK. Edinburgh is the capital and Glasgow is the largest of the cities of Scotland.
The politics of Scotland operate within the constitution of the United Kingdom, of which Scotland is a country. Scotland is a democracy, being represented in both the Scottish Parliament and the Parliament of the United Kingdom since the Scotland Act 1998. Most executive power is exercised by the Scottish Government, led by the First Minister of Scotland, the head of government in a multi-party system. The judiciary of Scotland, dealing with Scots law, is independent of the legislature and the Scottish Government. Scots law is primarily determined by the Scottish Parliament. The Scottish Government shares some executive powers with the Scotland Office, a British government department led by the Secretary of State for Scotland.
The Scottish Government is the devolved government of Scotland. It was formed in 1999 as the Scottish Executive following the 1997 referendum on Scottish devolution. 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.
The Welsh Government is the devolved government of Wales. The government consists of ministers and deputy ministers. It is led by the first minister, usually the leader of the largest party in the Senedd, who selects ministers and deputy ministers with the approval of the Senedd. The government is responsible for tabling policy in devolved areas for consideration by the Senedd and implementing policy that has been approved by it.
Education in Scotland is provided in state schools, private schools and by individuals through homeschooling. Mandatory education in Scotland begins for children in Primary 1 (P1) at primary school and ends in Fourth Year (S4) at secondary school. Overall accountability and control of state–education in Scotland rests with the Scottish Government, and is overseen by its executive agency, Education Scotland, with additional responsibility for nursery schools being the joint responsibility of both Education Scotland and the Care Inspectorate. Scotland's private schools are overseen by the Scottish Council of Independent Schools. Children in Scotland sit mandatory National Standardised Assessments in Primary 1 (P1), Primary 4 (P4), Primary 7 (P7) at the end of primary school, and Third Year (S3) in secondary school, which assist in monitoring children's progress and providing diagnostic data information to support teachers' professional judgement.
The Law Officers are the senior legal advisors to His Majesty's Government of the United Kingdom and devolved governments of Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. They are variously referred to as the Attorney General, Solicitor General, Lord Advocate, or Advocate General depending on seniority and geography - though other terms are also in use, such as the Counsel General for Wales. Law Officers in these roles are distinguished by being political appointees, while also being bound by the duties of independence, justice and confidentiality among the other typical professional commitments of lawyers. These roles do not have any direct oversight of prosecutions nor do they directly lead or influence criminal investigations. This is a distinguishing factor between Law Officers and the State Attorneys General of the United States or US Attorney General.
Caroline Lamb has served as the Chief Executive of NHS Scotland and Director General of Health and Social Care directorates since 2021.
The Scottish Government Education Directorates were a group of the civil service directorates in the Scottish Government. The Directorates were titled Children, Young People and Social Care; Schools; and Lifelong Learning. They were responsible for education in Scotland; social work care for children and young people and lifelong learning. In December 2010 these functions were taken on by the Learning and Justice Directorates.
The Scottish Government Justice and Communities Directorates were a group of Directorates within the Scottish Government 2007–2010.
The Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, commonly referred to as the Health Secretary, is a cabinet position in the Scottish Government. The Cabinet Secretary is responsible for the Health and Social Care Directorates and NHS Scotland.
The work of the Scottish Government is carried out by Directorates, each headed by a Director. The Directorates are grouped into a number of Directorates-General families, each headed by a Director-General. However, the individual Directorates are the building blocks of the system. The Directorates are further broken down into 'Divisions' and then by Units and finally by Teams. Divisions usually consist of 25-50 people. There is no direct correspondence between the political responsibilities of the Ministers in the Scottish Government and the Directorates, although in some cases there is considerable overlap. The Directorates are also responsible for a number of government agencies and non-departmental public bodies. Some government work is also carried out by Executive Agencies such as Transport Scotland, who sit outside the Directorates structure, but are also staffed by civil servants.
Scottish Parliament committees are small groups of Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) who meet on a regular basis to scrutinise the work of the Scottish Government, conduct inquiries into subjects within their remit and examine legislation. Much of the everyday work of the Scottish Parliament is done by these committees.
The Scottish Government Education and Justice Directorates are a group of civil service Directorates in the Scottish Government created by a re-organisation.
The Scottish Exchequer is a group of Directorates of the Scottish Government. The Exchequer was formed in December 2010 with a re-organisation of the Scottish Government.
The Culture, Tourism and Major Events Directorate is a directorate of the Scottish Government that has a responsibility for representing Scotland in other countries as a place of tourism, investment and cultural exchange.
The Social Security Directorate is a directorate of the Scottish Government responsible for social security policy in Scotland. The directorate ensures the smooth and secure transition of benefits that are to be devolved to the Scottish Parliament, amounting to £2.8 billion.
Màiri Louise McAllan is a Scottish politician serving as Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero and Energy since 2024. She previously served as Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Net Zero and Just Transition from 2023 to 2024 and Minister for Environment, Biodiversity and Land Reform from 2021 to 2023. A member of the Scottish National Party (SNP), she has been the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Clydesdale since 2021. McAllan is a former corporate solicitor, who also served as a special advisor to First Minister Nicola Sturgeon prior to her election to the Scottish Parliament.
Building a New Scotland is a series of papers published by the Scottish Government that seeks to lay out a prospectus for Scottish independence. The Scottish Government had proposed holding an independence referendum on 19 October 2023.
The Scottish Government Corporate Directorates are a group of Directorates of the Scottish Government. The Directorates are headed by Lesley Fraser, who was appointed to the interim role Director-General (DG) for Organisational Development and Operations in July 2019, before the role became Director-General Corporate in March 2021. Primarily, DG Corporate is solely responsible for the organisational improvements of the Scottish Government and its associated Cabinet Secretaries and Ministers. The responsibilities of the role include people and capability, staff engagement, ministerial support, communications, digital, legal services, facilities and estates, financial management, commercial and procurement functions.
The Exchequer Directorates of the Scottish Government are a group of directorates of the Scottish Government. The Exchequer Directorate is headed by Alyson Stafford CBE was appointed in July 2017. The Director General of the Scottish Exchequer Directorate is solely responsible for the overall setting, overview and implementing of the Scottish Budget, including tax, spending of the Scottish Government and measuring performance, and for any advice and support, as well as for the systems on finance and procurement. The Director-General of the Exchequer Directorate is a member of the Scottish Government's Corporate Governance Board.
