Minister for Public Health and Women's Health

Minister for Public Health and Women's Health
Scottish Gaelic: Ministear airson Slàinte a’ Phobaill agus Slàinte nam Ban
Incumbent Jenni Minto since 29 March 2023
Style	Minister (within parliament) Health Minister (informal) Scottish Health Minister (outwith Scotland)
Member of	Scottish Parliament Scottish Government
Reports to	Scottish Parliament
Seat	Edinburgh
Appointer	First Minister
Inaugural holder	Iain Gray Deputy Minister for Health and Community Care
Formation	13 May 1999
Salary	£106,185 per annum (2024) [1] (including £72,196 MSP salary)
Website	www.gov.scot

The Minister for Public Health and Women's Health is a junior ministerial post in the Scottish Government. The minister is not a member of the Scottish Cabinet, and reports to the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care.

The current minister is Jenni Minto, who was appointed by First Minister Humza Yousaf on 29 March 2023.

Overview

The office in its current form has specific responsibility for: ^[2]

• Public health
• Women's health
• Palliative care
• Abortion
• Child and maternal health
• Sexual health
• Medical records
• Population health
• Healthy weight
• Sensory impairment
• Food Standards Scotland
• Pharmacy
• Ophthalmology
• Audiology
• Pharmacy First
• MyNHS Digital
• Mobile healthcare
• National Pharmaceutical Agency
• Vaccination programmes
• Dentistry

History

From 1999 to 2007, public health was the responsibility of the Minister for Health and Community Care and the Deputy Minister for Health and Community Care. The Salmond government, elected following the 2007 elections, created the junior post of Minister for Public Health who assisted the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing in the Scottish Government.^{[ citation needed ]}

In 2009, the post became the Minister for Public Health and Sport after assuming the Sport portfolio. From 2011, the post reverted to the title of Minister for Public Health and sport was once again separated off to a new Minister for Commonwealth Games and Sport post. Following the 2016 Scottish Parliament election, Nicola Sturgeon recreated the old Minister for Public Health and Sport post.^{[ citation needed ]}

The Minister does not attend the Scottish Cabinet. ^[3]

List of office holders

Name		Portrait	Entered Office	Left Office	Party	First Minister
	Iain Gray		13 May 1999	26 October 2000	Labour	Donald Dewar
	Malcolm Chisholm		26 October 2000	22 November 2001	Labour	Henry McLeish
	Hugh Henry		22 November 2001	4 May 2002	Labour	Jack McConnell
	Mary Mulligan		22 November 2001	8 October 2004	Labour
	Frank McAveety		4 May 2002	20 May 2003	Labour
	Tom McCabe		20 May 2003	8 October 2004	Labour	Jack McConnell
	Rhona Brankin		8 October 2004	28 June 2005	Labour
	Lewis Macdonald		28 June 2005	17 May 2007	Labour
	Shona Robison		17 May 2007	10 Feb 2009	Scottish National Party	Alex Salmond
	Shona Robison		11 Feb 2009	20 May 2011	Scottish National Party	Alex Salmond
	Michael Matheson		20 May 2011	21 November 2014	Scottish National Party	Alex Salmond
	Maureen Watt		21 November 2014	18 May 2016	Scottish National Party	Nicola Sturgeon
	Aileen Campbell		18 May 2016	27 June 2018	Scottish National Party	Nicola Sturgeon
	Joe FitzPatrick		27 June 2018	18 December 2020	Scottish National Party	Nicola Sturgeon
	Mairi Gougeon		21 December 2020	20 May 2021	Scottish National Party
	Maree Todd		20 May 2021	29 March 2023	Scottish National Party	Nicola Sturgeon
	Jenni Minto		29 March 2023	Incumbent	Scottish National Party	Humza Yousaf

See also

• Scottish Government
• Scottish Parliament
• Question Time

References

1. "MSP salaries". parliament.scot. The Scottish Parliament. 10 May 2024.
2. "Minister for Public Health and Women's Health". www.gov.scot. Retrieved 2023-04-02.
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".

External links

• Minister for Public Health and Sport on Scottish Government website