# Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs

The Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs (Scottish Gaelic: Rùnaire a’ Chaibineit airson Ceartas agus Cùisean na Dùthcha), commonly referred to as the Justice Secretary (Scottish Gaelic: Rùnaire a' Cheartais), is a position in the Scottish Government Cabinet. The Cabinet Secretary has overall responsibility for law and order in Scotland. The current Cabinet Secretary for Justice is Angela Constance, who was appointed in March 2023.
The Cabinet Secretary is assisted by the Minister for Victims and Community Safety, Siobhian Brown.

## History

The position was created in 1999 as the Minister for Justice, with the advent of devolution and the institution of the Scottish Parliament, taking over some of the roles and functions of the former Scottish Office Minister of State for Home Affairs that existed prior to 1999.
As with the UK Secretary of State for Justice, but unlike some other justice ministers, the Cabinet Secretary does not have any oversight of prosecutions - in Scotland these are handled by the Lord Advocate.

## Overview
### Responsibilities

The responsibilities of the Cabinet Secretary for Justice include:
* Policing
* Fire and rescue services
* Courts & sentencing
* The justice system and criminal law procedure
* Violence reduction
* Prison reform and prisoner policy
* Reducing reoffending
* Security
* Youth justice
* Access to justice
* Civil law
* Victim/witness support
* Criminal injuries compensation
* Legal aid fund
* Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service
* Bairn's Hoose
* Justice reform
* National Community Justice Strategy
* Veterans

### Public bodies

The following public bodies report to the Cabinet Secretary for Justice:
* Disclosure Scotland
* Judicial Appointments Board for Scotland
* Judicial Complaints Reviewer
* Parole Board for Scotland
* Police Investigations and Review Commissioner
* Risk Management Authority
* Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service
* Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission
* Scottish Fire and Rescue Service
* Scottish Law Commission
* Scottish Legal Aid Board
* Scottish Legal Complaints Commission
* Scottish Police Authority
* Scottish Prison Service
* Scottish Social Services Council

### Salary

The Cabinet Secretary for Justice is paid a total salary of £112,919, which is made up of £64,470 for being a MSP, and an additional allowance of £48,449 for the responsibility of being a Cabinet Secretary.

## List of office holders

Minister for Justice :
| Name | Name | Entered office | Left office | Party | First Minister |
| | Jim Wallace | 19 May 1999 | 21 May 2003 | Liberal Democrats | Donald Dewar Henry McLeish Jack McConnell |
| | Cathy Jamieson | 21 May 2003 | 17 May 2007 | Labour Party | Jack McConnell |
| Cabinet Secretary for Justice ||||||||
| | Kenny MacAskill | 17 May 2007 | 21 November 2014 | Scottish National Party | Alex Salmond |
| | Michael Matheson | 21 November 2014 | 26 June 2018 | Scottish National Party | Nicola Sturgeon |
| | Humza Yousaf | 26 June 2018 | 20 May 2021 | Scottish National Party | Nicola Sturgeon |
| | Keith Brown | 20 May 2021 | 29 March 2023 | Scottish National Party | Nicola Sturgeon |
| | Angela Constance | 29 March 2023 | Incumbent | Scottish National Party | Humza Yousaf John Swinney |