Charles III William, Duke of Rothesay Swinney government The Rt Hon John Swinney MSP The Rt Hon John Swinney MSP Kate Forbes MSP Sixth session Alison Johnstone MSP Angela Constance MSP Dorothy Bain KC The Rt Hon Lord Carloway KC PC United Kingdom Parliament elections European Parliament elections Local elections Referendums Starmer ministry The Rt Hon Keir Starmer MP The Rt Hon Ian Murray MP The secretary of state for Scotland (Scottish Gaelic: Rùnaire Stàite na h-Alba; Scots: Secretar o State fir Scotland), also referred to as the Scottish secretary, is a secretary of state in the Government of the United Kingdom, with responsibility for the Scotland Office.

The incumbent is Ian Murray, following his appointment by Prime Minister Keir Starmer in July 2024.

From June 2003 to October 2008, the holder of the office of secretary of state for Scotland also held another Cabinet post concurrently, leading to claims that the Scottish role was seen as a part-time ministry.

Moreover, the secretary of state for Scotland cannot introduce any bill or legislation in the UK Parliament relating to a devolved matter under the convention that the UK Government will not introduce legislation on devolved areas without the agreement of the Scottish Parliament.

[8] However, due to the secretary's position as a minister in the British government, the convention of Cabinet collective responsibility applies, and as such the post is usually viewed as being a partisan one to promote the UK government's decision-making in Scotland, as adherence to the convention precludes doing anything else.

[13] More broadly, the UK Government advocates that all UK Government cabinet ministers with responsibility for a territorial secretary of state position are responsible for:[14] The post of secretary of state for Scotland existed after the Union of the Parliament of Scotland and the Parliament of England in 1707 till the Jacobite rising of 1745.

After the rising, responsibility for Scotland lay primarily with the office of the home secretary, usually exercised by the lord advocate.

The secretary for Scotland was chief minister in charge of the Scottish Office in the United Kingdom government.