Richard Neilson Lochhead is a Scottish politician serving as the Minister for Business since 2023. A member of the Scottish National Party (SNP),he served as the Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs,Food and Environment from 2007 to 2016. Lochhead has been a member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) since 1999,first representing North East Scotland electoral region from 1999 to 2006,before representing the Moray constituency since 2006.
James Stuart Mather is a former Scottish National Party (SNP) politician. He was the Minister for Enterprise,Energy and Tourism from 2007 to 2011 and a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) from 2003 to 2011. Mather was the SNP's treasurer for four years. Since leaving parliament he has held various non-executive posts and academic roles.
Michael Stephen Matheson is a Scottish politician who has been a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) since 1999,first representing the Central Scotland region and,since 2007,the Falkirk West constituency. Matheson previously served in the Scottish government as Cabinet Secretary for NHS Recovery,Health and Social Care from 2023 to 2024,Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero,Energy and Transport from 2018 to 2023,and Cabinet Secretary for Justice from 2014 to 2018.
Shona McRory Robison is a Scottish politician who has served as Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government since 2023. A member of the Scottish National Party (SNP),she previously served as Deputy First Minister of Scotland from 2023 to 2024. Robison has been the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Dundee City East since 2003 and was an additional member for the North East Scotland region from 1999 to 2003.
Patrick Harvie is a Scottish politician who served as Minister for Zero Carbon Buildings,Active Travel and Tenants' Rights from 2021 to 2024. He has served as one of two co-leaders of the Scottish Greens since 2008,and is one of the first Green politicians in the UK to serve as a government minister. Harvie has been a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Glasgow region since 2003.
Argyll and Bute is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood) covering most of the council area of Argyll and Bute. It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post method of election. It is also one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands electoral region,which elects seven additional members,in addition to the eight constituency MSPs,to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.
Angela Constance is a Scottish politician serving as Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs since 2023. A member of the Scottish National Party (SNP),she has been the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Almond Valley since 2007.
Duncan Hamilton KC is a Scottish lawyer and Scottish National Party politician. He was a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Highlands and Islands region from 1999 to 2003.
Kevin Morrice Stewart is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician who served as Minister for Transport from 29 March 2023 to 6 June 2023. He is a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Aberdeen Central since 2011. He previously served as Minister for Mental Wellbeing and Social Care from 2021 to 2023 and as Minister for Local Government,Housing and Planning from 2016 to 2021.
Mairi Angela Gougeon is a Scottish politician who has served as Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs,Land Reform and Islands since 2021. A member of the Scottish National Party (SNP),she has been the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Angus North and Mearns since 2016.
Jennifer Madeleine Gilruth is a Scottish politician who has served as the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills since 2023. A member of the Scottish National Party (SNP),she has been the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Mid Fife and Glenrothes since 2016.
Ashten Regan is a Scottish politician. She has been the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Edinburgh Eastern since 2016. Initially elected to parliament for the Scottish National Party (SNP),she defected to the Alba Party. Regan served under First Minister Nicola Sturgeon as the minister for community safety from 2018 until she resigned in 2022 in protest against her government's Gender Recognition Reform bill.
Thomas Compton Arthur MSP is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician. He is the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the constituency of Renfrewshire South,having been first elected in 2016 and re-elected in 2021. He has served as Minister for Employment and Investment since 2024.
Maree Todd is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician who has been the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Caithness,Sutherland and Ross since May 2021. She was previously an MSP for the Highlands and Islands from the election in May 2016. She has been serving as the Minister for Social Care,Mental Wellbeing and Sport since March 2023. She previously served as the Minister for Public Health,Women's Health and Sport from 2021 to 2023,and as the Minister for Children and Young People from 2017 to 2021.
Siobhian Brown is a politician in Scotland,serving as Minister for Victims and Community Safety since 2023 and a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Ayr since 2021. A member of the Scottish National Party (SNP),she was a councillor for the Ayr West ward of South Ayrshire Council.
Kaukab Stewart is a Pakistani-born Scottish politician who has served as Minister for Equalities since May 2024. A member of the Scottish National Party (SNP),she has been the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Glasgow Kelvin since May 2021.
Emma Roddick is a Scottish National Party (SNP) politician. Emma served as the Minister for Equalities,Migration and Refugees between 2023 and 2024;stepping down when John Swinney was appointed first minister She has been a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Highlands and Islands since May 2021.
The Bute House Agreement, officially the Cooperation Agreement between the Scottish Government and the Scottish Green Party Parliamentary Group was a power-sharing agreement between the Scottish National Party (SNP) government and the Scottish Greens which was agreed in August 2021 to support the Third Sturgeon government and then was reaffirmed to support the First Yousaf government.
The Michael Matheson iPad scandal,commonly known as iPadgate,emerged as a significant controversy in Scottish politics in late 2023. Michael Matheson,then serving as Cabinet Secretary for NHS Recovery,Health and Social Care in the government of Humza Yousaf,was revealed to have incurred nearly £11,000 in roaming charges after taking a Scottish Parliament iPad on a family holiday to Morocco. Matheson initially attempted to claim the charges as a parliamentary expense,but later admitted that the iPad had been used by his sons to stream football matches,and agreed to personally pay back the full cost of the data roaming bill. Following an investigation by the Scottish Parliament Corporate Body,Matheson resigned as Health Secretary in February 2024. Matheson was subsequently banned from Holyrood for 27 days and had his salary withdrawn for 54 days,the heaviest sanction ever given to an MSP.
The 2024 Scottish National Party leadership election took place to choose the leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) following the resignation of Humza Yousaf on 29 April 2024,amid a government crisis. Nominations closed on 6 May,with John Swinney emerging as the only candidate and was subsequently elected unopposed as the party's new leader.
