The Cabinet Secretary for the Constitution, External Affairs and Culture, commonly referred to as the Constitution Secretary, is a cabinet position in the Scottish Government. The Cabinet Secretary is supported by the
United Kingdom European Union membership referendum
The United Kingdom European Union membership referendum, commonly referred to as the EU referendum or the Brexit referendum, took place on 23 June 2016 in the United Kingdom (UK) and Gibraltar to ask the electorate whether the country shoul ...
took place on 23 June 2016. This position was established (initially as "Minister for UK Negotiations on Scotland's Place in Europe") so that the Scottish government would be involved in the development of the UK government's position before the Prime Minister triggered Article 50.
During a Scottish Government reshuffle in June 2018, the post was promoted to the Cabinet and renamed Cabinet Secretary for Government Business and Constitutional Relations. It was further renamed to Cabinet Secretary for the Constitution, Europe and External Affairs in February 2020.
Overview
Responsibilities
The responsibilities of the Cabinet Secretary for the Constitution, External Affairs and Culture include:
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independence
Independence is a condition of a person, nation, country, or state in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the statu ...
* cross-government co-ordination of European and external relations
* policy in relation to UK's exit from the EU
* post-
Brexit
Brexit (; a portmanteau of "British exit") was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU) at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February 2020 CET).The UK also left the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC or ...
relations
* migration
* Scottish diaspora
* Global Affairs Network
* Scottish Cities of Refuge
* New Scot strategy
* culture policy
* broadcasting and screen
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National Records of Scotland
National Records of Scotland ( gd, Clàran Nàiseanta na h-Alba) is a non-ministerial department of the Scottish Government. It is responsible for Civil registry, civil registration, the census in Scotland, demography and statistics, family histor ...
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Registers of Scotland
Registers of Scotland (RoS) is the non-ministerial department of the Scottish Government responsible for compiling and maintaining records relating to property and other legal documents. They currently maintain 20 public registers. The official r ...
The following public bodies report to the Cabinet Secretary for the Constitution, External Affairs and Culture :
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Architecture and Design Scotland
Architecture and Design Scotland, styled Architecture+DesignScotland (A&DS; gd, Ailtearachd is Dealbhadh na h-Alba), is an executive non-departmental public body
In the United Kingdom, non-departmental public body (NDPB) is a classification appli ...
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Creative Scotland
Creative Scotland ( gd, Alba Chruthachail ; sco, Creative Scotlan) is the development body for the arts and creative industries in Scotland. Based in Edinburgh, it is an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government.
The o ...
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Historic Environment Scotland
Historic Environment Scotland (HES) ( gd, Àrainneachd Eachdraidheil Alba) is an executive non-departmental public body responsible for investigating, caring for and promoting Scotland's historic environment. HES was formed in 2015 from the mer ...
National Library of Scotland
The National Library of Scotland (NLS) ( gd, Leabharlann Nàiseanta na h-Alba, sco, Naitional Leebrar o Scotland) is the legal deposit library of Scotland and is one of the country's National Collections. As one of the largest libraries in the ...
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National Museums of Scotland
National Museums Scotland (NMS; gd, Taighean-tasgaidh Nàiseanta na h-Alba) is an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government. It runs the national museums of Scotland.
NMS is one of the country's National Collections ...
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Visitscotland
VisitScotland, formerly the Scottish Tourist Board, is a national tourism organisation for Scotland. It is an executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government, with offices in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Inverness, and other ...
List of office holders
See also
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Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament ( gd, Pàrlamaid na h-Alba ; sco, Scots Pairlament) is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Scotland. Located in the Holyrood area of the capital city, Edinburgh, it is frequently referred to by the metonym Holyro ...
Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union
Her Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union or, informally, Brexit Secretary, was a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, responsible for the business of the Department for Exiting the Euro ...