Minister for Drugs and Alcohol Policy

Minister for Drugs and Alcohol Policy
Scottish Gaelic: Ministear airson Poileasaidh Drogaichean is Deoch-làidir
Incumbent Vacant since 27 March 2025
Style	Minister (within parliament) Drugs and Alcohol Policy Minister (informal) Scottish Drugs and Alcohol Policy Minister (outwith Scotland)
Member of	Scottish Parliament Scottish Government
Reports to	Scottish Parliament
Seat	Edinburgh
Appointer	First Minister
Inaugural holder	Angela Constance Minister for Drugs Policy
Formation	18 December 2020
Salary	£106,185 per annum (2024) [1] (including £72,196 MSP salary)
Website	www.gov.scot

The Minister for Drugs and Alcohol Policy is a junior ministerial post in the Scottish Government. As a result, the minister does not attend the Scottish Cabinet but reports to the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care (Scotland) who does. ^{[2] [3]}

The position has been vacant since 27 March 2025 following the death of Christina McKelvie whilst serving in office. ^[4] She was appointed in February 2024. ^[5]

History

The office was created in December 2020 by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon following the resignation of Minister for Public Health, Joe FitzPatrick. His resignation was triggered by the figures released that showed Scotland again had the worst drug death rate in Europe. ^[6] Sturgeon stated that her government had taken their "eye off the ball on drug deaths" and appointed Angela Constance to take on the new dedicated role as Minister for Drugs Policy. ^{[7] [8]}

Following the 2023 SNP leadership election, incumbent First Minister Humza Yousaf appointed Elena Whitham as the renamed Minister for Drugs and Alcohol Policy. ^[9] On 7 February 2024, Whitham announced she resigning from the post due to her suffering from PTSD. ^[10] The following day, as part of a wider cabinet reshuffle, triggered by the resignation of Health Secretary, Michael Matheson, Yousaf appointed Christina McKelvie to the post. ^[11] In June 2024, McKelvie announced that she had breast cancer and that she will go on leave while she underwent treatment for it. ^[12] On March 10 2025, McKelvie announced that due to her health problems caused by the breast cancer, she will not run for reelection in 2026 and plans to continue her cancer treatment. ^{[13] [14]} Unfortunately, McKelvie died on March 27 2025 of the breast cancer, making the position vacant. ^[15]

Overview

Responsibilities

The specific responsibilities of the minister are: ^[2]

• Tackling and reducing the harm of drug misuse
• Supporting the rehabilitation and recovery of those living with drug addiction
• Reducing the number of deaths from drugs

The responsibilities of the new Minister for Drugs and Alcohol Policy within the Yousaf government are still to be announced.

List of office holders

Name		Portrait	Assumed office	Left office	Party	First Minister
	Angela Constance		18 December 2020	29 March 2023	Scottish National Party	Nicola Sturgeon
	Elena Whitham		29 March 2023	7 February 2024	Scottish National Party	Humza Yousaf
	Christina McKelvie		8 February 2024	27 March 2025 (died in office)	Scottish National Party	Humza Yousaf John Swinney

References

1. "MSP salaries". parliament.scot. The Scottish Parliament. 10 May 2024.
2. "Minister for Drugs Policy". www.gov.scot. Scottish Government . Retrieved 22 December 2020.
3. Scotland Act (1998), Only those appointed under Section 47 of the Scotland Act "attend" Cabinet. Junior ministers are appointed under Section 49 and may be "present".
4. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cd7e10p4nr1o
5. "Full ministerial team confirmed". www.gov.scot. Retrieved 30 March 2023.
6. "Drug deaths in Scotland: Minister Joe FitzPatrick loses job". BBC News. 18 December 2020. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
7. "Drug deaths in Scotland: Minister Joe FitzPatrick loses job". BBC News . 19 December 2020. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
8. "Sturgeon: We took our eye off the ball on drug deaths". HeraldScotland. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
9. "Full ministerial team confirmed". www.gov.scot. Retrieved 30 March 2023.
10. "Drugs minister Elena Whitham quits due to post-traumatic stress". BBC News. 6 February 2024. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
11. "Neil Gray replaces Michael Matheson as Scottish health secretary". BBC News. 8 February 2024. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
12. https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c79wqle1xqno
13. https://www.holyrood.com/news/view,christina-mckelvie-to-stand-down-at-next-election
14. https://news.stv.tv/politics/msp-mckelvie-who-is-undergoing-cancer-treatment-to-stand-down-next-year
15. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cd7e10p4nr1o

External links

• Minister for Drugs Policy on Scottish Government website