The Minister for Local Government Empowerment and Planning ( gd, Ministear airson Cumhachd Riaghaltas Ionadail agus Dealbhaidh) is a
junior minister
A minister is a politician who heads a ministry, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers. In some jurisdictions the head of government is also a minister and is designated the ‘prime minister’, â ...
ial post in the
Scottish Government. As a result, the Minister does not attend the
Scottish Cabinet.
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".'' The minister supports the , who has overall responsible for the portfolio.Joe FitzPatrick
Joseph Martin FitzPatrick (born 1 April 1967) is a Scottish politician who is a member of the Scottish National Party (SNP), and has been the Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Dundee City West since the 2007. He is Convener of the Sc ...
MSP, who was appointed on 29 March 2023.
Overview
The Minister has responsibility for:
* Housing
* Social security
Welfare, or commonly social welfare, is a type of government support intended to ensure that members of a society can meet basic human needs such as food and shelter. Social security may either be synonymous with welfare, or refer specificall ...
* Local government
Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loca ...
* Planning and building standards
* Business Improvement Districts
* Community planning
* Homelessness
* Regeneration
* Fuel poverty
History
In 2011, the position of Minister for Local Government and Planning was created; the portfolio changed in November 2014 following a reshuffle by Nicola Sturgeon
Nicola Ferguson Sturgeon (born 19 July 1970) is a Scottish politician serving as First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) since 2014. She is the first woman to hold either position. She has been a member of ...
when she became First Minister of Scotland
The first minister of Scotland ( sco, heid meinister o Scotland; gd, prìomh mhinistear na h-Alba ) is the head of the Scottish Government and keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland. The first minister chairs ...
. The post was rebranded at that point to Minister for Local Government and Community Empowerment.
In September 2012, the junior post of Minister for Housing and Welfare was announced, with a portfolio intended to reflect the important role of housing in aiding economic recovery and the challenges that face those in poverty. In May 2016, Nicola Sturgeon reshuffled junior ministers and the post joined local government and housing in a new Minister for Local Government and Housing role. Planning was added to the title in June 2018. The title was changed in May 2021 to Minister for Social Security and Local Government at the start of the third Sturgeon government
Nicola Sturgeon formed the third Sturgeon government following her Scottish National Party's victory in the 2021 Scottish Parliament election. Sturgeon was nominated by a vote of the 6th Scottish Parliament for appointment to the post of First ...
, with the post also taking responsibility for social security, which between 2018 and 2021 was the responsibility of a separate cabinet-level post, the Cabinet Secretary for Social Security and Older People
The Cabinet Secretary for Social Security and Older People was a position in the Scottish Government Cabinet. The Cabinet Secretary had overall responsibility for social security, equality and human rights. The Cabinet Secretary was assisted by a ...
.[ In March 2023, the post became Minister for Local Government Empowering and Planning under the ]Yousaf government
Humza Yousaf formed the Yousaf government on 29 March 2023 following his appointment as First Minister of Scotland, first minister of Scotland at the Court of Session. It followed the resignation of Nicola Sturgeon as first minister and leader o ...
.
List of office holders
References
External links
The Scottish Cabinet
on Scottish Government website
Minister for Local Government, Housing and Planning
on Scottish Government website
Scottish Parliament
Local Government, Housing and Planning
Local government in Scotland
Town and country planning in Scotland
Community empowerment
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