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From the 13th century onwards, the Kingdom of Scotland had been governed by the “Estates of Scotland”, which served as the Parliament and remained functioning till the Kingdom merged with the Kingdom of England.
It was the signing of the Acts of Union 1707 that brought the Kingdoms of Scotland and England to unite to form the Kingdom of Great Britain. This led to the merger of the Parliaments of Scotland and England to become the Parliament of Great Britain and has been serving from Westminster in London since that period.
In 1997, the people of Scotland voted in a referendum for a separate Scottish Parliament to be established. The Scotland Act 1998 devolved greater powers to the Scottish Parliament. The Act defines the areas where the Scottish Parliament can legislate while the British Parliament holds the right to expand or restrict the areas of legislation by the Scottish Parliament. In the British cabinet, Scotland is represented by the secretary of state.
The Scottish Parliament can legislate on matters related to judiciary, law, and order, economic development, education, local affairs, and the NHS Scotland. Foreign affairs, defense matters, international trade, social security, monetary policy, and most areas of taxation, remain with the British Parliament.
The Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament is located at Holyrood, Edinburgh, and is a devolved, unicameral legislature.
The electoral process in Scotland has voters, 18 years and above, who elect members to the local councils, the Scottish Parliament, the House of Commons, and the European Parliament. For better administration, Scotland is divided into 32 Councils that are entrusted with the responsibility of local governance and development.
The Scottish Parliament comprises 129 members called the Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs). Of these, 73 are from single-member constituencies and 56 are elected on the basis of proportional representation from regional parties. As per the mixed-member proportional representation system, members are elected for four-year terms.
The Government is headed by the First Minister, who is appointed by the Queen on the recommendation of the Scottish Parliament.
The First Minister chooses his team from elected members, and after approval from Parliament, appoints them as Cabinet Secretaries. A similar procedure is followed in appointing Junior Cabinet Secretaries who assist the Cabinet Secretaries in their respective portfolios.
The present Government
The Scottish National Party (SNP) has been in power since 2007 and is presently headed by Nicola Sturgeon serving as the First Minister.
With growing nationalist calls for independence, a referendum was called on 18 September 2014 for a “Yes” – “No” vote to decide whether Scotland was to remain a part of the United Kingdom or not. The “No” voters won by a small margin and Scotland remained as part of the UK.
With the recent referendum in the UK favoring Brexit, the debate for independence in Scotland has once again been re-ignited. Scotland would like to remain a part of the EU and First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has called for snap elections in mid-2017, a move that will have a major impact on Scotland’s future.
Nicola Sturgeon is the incumbent First Minister since 20th November 2014.
Councils of Scotland |
|||
| Council | Council HQ | Latitude | Longitude |
|---|---|---|---|
| Glasgow | Glasgow | 55.83 | -4.25 |
| Edinburgh | Edinburgh | 55.95 | -3.2 |
| Aberdeenshire/Aberdeen | Aberdeen City | 57.13 | -2.1 |
| Dundee | Dundee | 56.5 | -2.97 |
| Renfrewshire | Paisley | 55.83 | -4.43 |
| West Lothian | Livingston | 55.88 | -3.53 |
| South Lanarkshire | Hamilton | 55.77 | -4.03 |
| South Ayrshire | Ayr | 55.45 | -4.62 |
| East Ayrshire | Kilmarnock | 55.63 | -4.53 |
| Inverclyde | Greenock | 55.93 | -4.75 |
| Perthshire and Kinross | Perth | 56.4 | -3.43 |
| Highland | Inverness | 57.47 | -4.23 |
| Fife | Glenrothes | 56.2 | -3.18 |
| Falkirk | Falkirk | 56 | -3.77 |
| North Ayrshire | Irvine | 55.6 | -4.67 |
| Stirling | Stirling | 56.12 | -3.95 |
| Dumfries and Galloway | Dumfries | 55.07 | -3.55 |
| North Lanarkshire | Motherwell | 55.78 | -4 |
| Moray | Elgin | 57.65 | -3.33 |
| West Dunbartonshire | Dumbarton | 55.95 | -4.57 |
| East Dunbartonshire | Kirkintilloch | 55.92 | -4.17 |
| Clackmannanshire | Alloa | 56.12 | -3.8 |
| East Renfrewshire | Giffnock | 55.8 | -4.28 |
| Angus | Forfar | 56.65 | -2.88 |
| Midlothian | Dalkeith | 55.87 | -3.07 |
| East Lothian | Haddington | 55.93 | -2.77 |
| Shetland Islands | Lerwick | 60.15 | -1.15 |
| Orkney Islands | Kirkwall | 58.97 | -2.95 |
| Argyll and Bute | Lochgilphead | 56.03 | -5.42 |
| Scottish Borders | Newtown St Boswells | 55.57802 | -2.672696 |
| Eileanan Siar (Western Isles) | Stornoway | 58.209324 | -6.384963 |