The Scottish Parliament

The kingdom of Scotland had its own government institution for more than four centuries prior to 1707, when it became part of Britain. It was then governed from London until 1999. Since then, the Scottish Parliament and government jointly have responsibility for policy areas such as law, healthcare, immigration, consumer rights, energy, employment and industrial legislation in Scotland.

There are 129 Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) and the Scottish government is made up of the political party with the most MSPs. The Scottish election procedure is similar to the one for the Welsh Assembly ~ one vote for the local constituency MSP (there are 73 of those) and one for the regional MSP (the other 56), the aim of which is to bring more balance.

The monarch’s approval must be obtained for the appointment of all Scottish Ministers. The leader is called the First Minister. The Scottish Parliament Building was constructed next to Holyroodhouse in Edinburgh and was completed in 2004. Its Spanish architect is said to have strewn twigs and leaves on the table in order to represent his design concept. The finished building received many awards but at a price ~ some £414,400,000.

(Image of one façade of Scottish Parliament Building: Tim Hallam at geograph.org.uk / CC BY-SA 2.0)