The Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs, commonly referred to as the Justice Secretary , is a position in the Scottish Government Cabinet. The Cabinet Secretary has overall responsibility for law and order in Scotland. The current Cabinet Secretary for Justice is Angela Constance, who was appointed in March 2023. The Cabinet Secretary is assisted by the Minister for Victims and Community Safety, Siobhian Brown.

History

The position was created in 1999 as the Minister for Justice, with the advent of devolution and the institution of the Scottish Parliament, taking over some of the roles and functions of the former Scottish Office Minister of State for Home Affairs that existed prior to 1999. As with the UK Secretary of State for Justice, but unlike some other justice ministers, the Cabinet Secretary does not have any oversight of prosecutions - in Scotland these are handled by the Lord Advocate.

Overview

Responsibilities

The responsibilities of the Cabinet Secretary for Justice include:

Public bodies

The following public bodies report to the Cabinet Secretary for Justice:

Salary

The Cabinet Secretary for Justice is paid a total salary of GB£112,919, which is made up of GB£64,470 for being a MSP, and an additional allowance of GB£48,449 for the responsibility of being a Cabinet Secretary.

List of office holders

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Minister for Justice

!colspan="2"|Name ! width=75|Portrait !Entered office !Left office !Party ! colspan=2|First Minister

Cabinet Secretary for Justice