Second Sturgeon government

Nicola Sturgeon formed the second Sturgeon government following her Scottish National Party's victory in the 2016 Scottish Parliament election. Sturgeon was nominated by a vote of the 5th Scottish Parliament for appointment to the post of First Minister on 17 May 2016.[1] She was subsequently appointed by Queen Elizabeth II on 18 May, and announced formation of a new Scottish National Party minority government.[2]

Second Sturgeon government
8th Devolved Government of Scotland
2016–present
First Minister Sturgeon's reshuffled cabinet at Bute House, 2018
Date formed	18 May 2016
People and organisations
Monarch	Elizabeth II
First Minister	Nicola Sturgeon
First Minister's history	2014–present
Deputy First Minister	John Swinney
Total no. of members	26 (including First Minister)
Member party	Scottish National Party
Status in legislature	Minority 63 / 129 (49%) As of 2020: 61 / 129 (47%)
Opposition party	Scottish Conservative
Opposition leader	Ruth Davidson (2016-18) Jackson Carlaw (2018-19) Ruth Davidson (2019) Jackson Carlaw (2019-20) Ruth Davidson (2020–)
History
Election(s)	2016 general election
Legislature term(s)	5th Scottish Parliament
Budget(s)	2018 budget
Predecessor	First Sturgeon government

History

In the May 2016 Scottish Parliament election, the Scottish National Party (SNP) won 63 of the 129 seats contested. Incumbent First Minister Nicola Sturgeon soon afterwards announced her intention to form a minority government. She was nominated for the post of First Minister by a vote of the Scottish Parliament on 17 May, defeating Scottish Liberal Democrat leader, Willie Rennie by 63 votes to 5, with 59 abstentions.[1] Ahead of the formation of the new government, long-serving ministers Alex Neil and Richard Lochhead announced their resignations from the cabinet.[3] Sturgeon recommended the appointment of James Wolffe as Lord Advocate and Alison Di Rollo as Solicitor General on 31 May 2016. Their recommendation was confirmed by the Scottish Parliament on the same day.[4]

Nicola Sturgeon announced a cabinet reshuffle on 26 June 2018.[5]

List of ministers

Cabinet[6][7]
Post	Minister	Portrait	Term
First Minister	The Right Hon.Nicola Sturgeon MSP		2016–present
Deputy First Minister	John Swinney MSP		2016–present
Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills
Cabinet Secretary for Finance	Derek Mackay MSP		2016–2020
	Kate Forbes MSP		2020–present
Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport	Shona Robison MSP		2016–2018
	Jeane Freeman MSP		2018–present
Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform	Roseanna Cunningham MSP		2016–present
Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Fair Work and Culture	Fiona Hyslop MSP		2016–present
Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Local Government	Angela Constance MSP		2016–2018
	Aileen Campbell MSP		2018–present
Cabinet Secretary for Justice	Michael Matheson MSP		2016–2018
	Humza Yousaf MSP		2018–present
Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Jobs and Fair Work	Keith Brown MSP		2016–2018
Cabinet Secretary for Rural Economy and Tourism	Fergus Ewing MSP		2016–present
Cabinet Secretary for Social Security and Older People	Shirley-Anne Somerville MSP		2018–present
Cabinet Secretary for the Constitution, Europe and External Affairs	Mike Russell MSP		2018–present
Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity	Michael Matheson MSP		2018–present

Junior ministers[8]
Post	Minister	Portrait	Term
Minister for Childcare and Early Years	Maree Todd MSP		2017–present
Minister for Further Education, Higher Education and Science	Shirley-Anne Somerville MSP		2016–2018
Minister for Parliamentary Business and Veterans	Joe FitzPatrick MSP		2016–2018
	Graeme Dey MSP		2018–present
Minister for Energy, Connectivity and the Islands	Humza Yousaf MSP		2016–2018
	Paul Wheelhouse MSP		2018–present
Minister for Business, Fair Work and Skills	Paul Wheelhouse MSP		2016–2018
	Jamie Hepburn MSP		2018–present
Minister for Public Health, Sport and Wellbeing	Aileen Campbell MSP		2016–2018
	Joe FitzPatrick MSP		2018–2020
	Mairi Gougeon MSP		2020-present
Minister for Mental Health	Maureen Watt MSP		2016–2018
	Clare Haughey MSP		2018–present
Minister for Community Safety	Annabelle Ewing MSP		2016–2018
	Ash Denham MSP		2018–present
Minister for Local Government, Housing and Planning	Kevin Stewart MSP		2016–present
Minister for Social Security	Jeane Freeman OBE MSP		2016–2018
Minister for Europe, Migration and International Development	Alasdair Allan MSP		2016–2018
	Ben Macpherson MSP		2018–2020
	Jenny Gilruth MSP		2020–present
Minister for UK Negotiations on Scotland's Place in Europe	Michael Russell MSP		2016–2018
Minister for Older People and Equalities	Christina McKelvie MSP		2018–present
Minister for Trade, Investment and Innovation	Ivan McKee MSP		2018–present
Minister for Public Finance and Migration	Kate Forbes MSP		2018–2020
	Ben Macpherson MSP		2020–present
Minister for Rural Affairs and the Natural Environment
	Mairi Gougeon MSP		2018-2020
Minister for Drug Policy	Angela Constance MSP		2020–present

Law officers[4]
Post	Name	Portrait	Term
Lord Advocate	James Wolffe QC		2016–
Solicitor General for Scotland	Alison Di Rollo QC		2016–

References

1. "Nicola Sturgeon wins Scottish first minister vote". BBC News. BBC. 17 May 2016. Retrieved 17 May 2016.
2. "Scottish cabinet reshuffle: John Swinney becomes education secretary". BBC News. BBC. 18 May 2016. Retrieved 18 May 2016.
3. "Alex Neil and Richard Lochhead step down from Holyrood cabinet". BBC News. BBC. 18 May 2016. Retrieved 18 May 2016.
4. "Law Officer appointments". news.scotland.gov.uk. Scottish Government. 31 May 2016. Retrieved 1 June 2016.
5. Carrell, Severin (26 June 2018). "Nicola Sturgeon carries out major reshuffle of Scottish cabinet". The Guardian.
6. "New Scottish Cabinet unveiled". news.scotland.gov.uk. Scottish Government. 18 May 2016. Archived from the original on 19 May 2016. Retrieved 18 May 2016.
7. "Ministers & Law Officers". parliament.scot. Scottish Parliament. Retrieved 21 May 2016.
8. "First Minister completes ministerial team". news.scotland.gov.uk. Scottish Government. 18 May 2016. Archived from the original on 19 May 2016. Retrieved 18 May 2016.