The elections for the fourth term of the Scottish Parliament took place on May 5, 2011. The SNP won a majority of the 129 seats and on May 18 Alex Salmond MSP was re-elected First Minister by MSPs.
Ministers in the new administration
There are nine Cabinet Secretaries (Cabinet Ministers) including the First Minister and 10 Ministers who report to a Cabinet Secretary.
Including the two Law Officers (Lord Advocate and Solicitor General for Scotland), this makes a total of 21 Ministers.
Cabinet Portfolios
The new administration has nine Cabinet portfolios:
- First Minister
- Finance, Employment and Sustainable Growth
- Health, Wellbeing and Cities Strategy
- Education and Lifelong Learning
- Justice
- Rural Affairs and Environment
- Culture and External Affairs
- Parliamentary Business and Government Strategy
- Infrastructure and Capital Investment