Officegate was a

political scandal In politics, a political scandal is an action or event regarded as morally or legally wrong and causing general public outrage. Politicians, government officials, party officials and lobbyists can be accused of various illegal, corrupt, unet ...

in Scotland surrounding the unregistered expenses of the then-

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 chair ...

Henry McLeish Henry Baird McLeish (born 15 June 1948) is a Scottish politician, author and academic who served as First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Labour Party in Scotland from 2000 to 2001. He was Member of Parliament (MP) for Central Fife from ...

, in 2001. It was the first major scandal the

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 Holyr ...

had faced since its reincarnation two years prior in 1999. The scandal dominated McLeish's final months in office and resulted in his

resignation Resignation is the formal act of leaving or quitting one's office or position. A resignation can occur when a person holding a position gained by election or appointment steps down, but leaving a position upon the expiration of a term, or choos ...

Background

In the 1987 UK General Election, McLeish was elected to

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, B ...

to serve as the

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members o ...

(MP) for Central Fife, where he took control of offices on Hanover Court,

Glenrothes Glenrothes (; , ; sco, Glenrothes; gd, Gleann Rathais) is a town situated in the heart of Fife, in east-central Scotland. It is about north of Edinburgh and south of Dundee. The town had a population of 39,277 in the 2011 census, making it ...

. The offices were too big and he sublet parts of the first floor. However, McLeish failed to declare the income from the sub lets to the House of Common's

register of interests A Register of Interests is a record kept, usually by a government body, of financial interests of its members. The register documents interests which may potentially unethically or unlawfully influence members' official duties. The term is in us ...

as he had "forgot". In early 2001, a newspaper reported that McLeish had received rent for 5 years from a solicitors firm, Digby Brown. Following the report, he registered the sub let with the House of Commons, however,

Dominic Grieve Dominic Charles Roberts Grieve (born 24 May 1956) is a British barrister and former politician who served as Shadow Home Secretary from 2008 to 2009 and Attorney General for England and Wales from 2010 to 2014. He served as the Member of Parl ...

, a Conservatives spokesman, later wrote to Elizabeth Filkin, the House of Commons Commissioner on Standards. The issue then became dormant as McLeish ceased to be an MP after the 2001 general election. There were continuing claims he should resign, mainly from the

Scottish National Party The Scottish National Party (SNP; sco, Scots National Pairty, gd, Pàrtaidh Nàiseanta na h-Alba ) is a Scottish nationalist and social democratic political party in Scotland. The SNP supports and campaigns for Scottish independence from th ...

who claimed the issue questioned his integrity. McLeish rebutted the charges against him, claiming that the issue was "a muddle, not a fiddle". Despite appearing to have support from Scottish Labour and the

Scottish Liberal Democrats The Scottish Liberal Democrats ( gd, Pàrtaidh Libearal Deamocratach na h-Alba, sco, Scots Leeberal Democrats) is a liberal, federalist political party in Scotland, a part of the United Kingdom Liberal Democrats. The party currently holds 4 of ...

, he resigned on 8 November. He was replaced by

Jack McConnell Jack Wilson McConnell, Baron McConnell of Glenscorrodale, (born 30 June 1960) is a Scottish politician who served as First Minister of Scotland and Leader of the Labour Party in Scotland from 2001 to 2007. McConnell served as the Minister fo ...

, who was elected unopposed to the leadership of Scottish Labour and was then elected First Minister by MSPs after securing the support of the Scottish Liberal Democrats.

Timeline of the Officegate scandal

* June 1987: McLeish becomes MP for Central Fife, where he takes control of a big office in

. He sublets part of his office, but fails to register his expenses with the House of Commons. * 1998: Digby Brown, a law firm, pays £4,000 a year to McLeish for sub letting part of his constituency office. * Early 2001: A newspaper reveals he has received expenses from the law firm and Conservative MP

writes to Elizabeth Filkin, the House of Commons Commissioner on Standards. * 22 April 2001: Filkin writes to McLeish regarding the controversy. His spokesperson states "the matter has been dealt with. The income in question was not for Mr McLeish's personal use, it went straight into covering the costs of running the office." The matter is laid to rest as he is no longer a Member of Parliament. * October 2001: Questions begin to arise surrounding McLeish's undeclared expenses. * 23 October 2001: McLeish states in a statement that he has paid £9,000 to the Fees Office at the House of Commons. * 25 October 2001: Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament,

David Steel David Martin Scott Steel, Baron Steel of Aikwood, (born 31 March 1938) is a British politician. Elected as Member of Parliament for Roxburgh, Selkirk, and Peebles, followed by Tweeddale, Ettrick, and Lauderdale, he served as the final leade ...

, bans MSPs from questioning McLeish over his expenses as it is a matter for the Westminster Parliament. * 28 October 2001: The Fife Constabulary launches an investigation into complaints against McLeish. * 1 November 2001: McLeish appears on BBC TV's Question Time and admits "he did not know the total sum of money involved from sub letting his constituency office". The interview is seen as a disaster by analysts. * 2 November 2001: The

Leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

in Holyrood,

John Swinney John Ramsay Swinney (born 13 April 1964) is a Scottish politician who has served as Deputy First Minister of Scotland since 2014 and Cabinet Secretary for Covid Recovery since 2021. He was the Leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) from ...

, calls for McLeish to resign after his "humiliating" interview. * 6 November 2001: McLeish claims his controversy as an "honest mistake" and offers to pay back £27,000 to House of Commons authorities, after it emerged the total rental income for sub letting the office since 1987 was over £36,000. * 7 November 2001: McLeish cancels all planned engagements. A survey reveals a majority favour his resignation, 77% to 23%. * 8 November 2001: McLeish tenders his resignation as First Minister, writing to the Presiding Officer: "I am writing to advise you formally that I have today written to Her Majesty, in accordance with Section 45(2) of the Scotland Act, to tender my resignation as first minister.

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