History of the Scotland Office

This section outlines the history of how Scottish business has been organised in Government and the background to Dover House, the London Headquarters of the Scotland Office.

The Scotland Office came into existence on 1 July 1999. The Office is part of the Government and is a distinct entity within the Ministry of Justice. This page explains briefly the circumstances that led to our creation and how we fit in to the landscape of government in the United Kingdom today.

For more information on the Ministry of Justice and for guidance on devolution, please visit http://www.justice.gov.uk/guidance/guidancedevolution.htm

History of Scottish Representation in Government

With the Union of England, Scotland and Wales in 1707, the Westminster Parliament included representatives from Scotland. This brought about the need for Scottish representation in Government in London. Originally this took the shape of a Scottish Secretary but the position was abolished after the 1745 Jacobite uprising. The role then lay with the Lord Advocate, the King's advisor on Scottish affairs, and a series of 'Scottish Managers'. In 1827 this arrangement ended and the Home Secretary took over responsibility for Scottish affairs until 1885.

In 1885 the Secretary of Scotland Act was passed. This formalised the position of the Scottish Secretary and gave him duties previously carried out by a variety of bodies. The passing of the Act also saw the creation of the Scottish Office, and the Duke of Richmond and Gordon was immediately appointed as the new Secretary. Between 1885 and 1926, there had been sixteen Secretaries for Scotland, when another change occurred. The post was elevated to a full Secretary of State, with one Minister of State and three Parliamentary Under Secretaries of State assisting him.

In the late 1930s the administration of Scottish affairs was streamlined. Various boards were abolished, and the Scottish Office was re-organised into four boards covering agriculture, education, health and home affairs. The headquarters of the Scottish Office was moved to St Andrew's House in Edinburgh.

Proposals for Devolution

At approximately the same time as the creation of the Scottish Office, there was the emergence of a Scottish Home Rule movement. Proposals for devolution for Scotland were first considered by Parliament in 1894. Proposals for devolution were revived by the Government in the 1970s and in 1979 a referendum was held in Scotland on proposals to establish a Scottish Assembly, with control over most of the Scottish Office functions. Although a small majority voted in favour, the proposals did not obtain the support of 40% of the electorate, which had been set as a requirement in legislation before the proposals could be implemented.

In 1989 the Scottish Constitutional Convention was established. It consisted of representatives of civic Scotland and some of the political parties. Its focus was to draw up a detailed blueprint for devolution. It proposed a Scottish Parliament with primary legislative powers in matters devolved to it.

The Scottish Constitutional Convention's Report in 1995 formed the basis of further proposals which were brought forward in a white paper, Scotland's Parliament, by the Government in 1997. These proposals received overwhelming support in a referendum on 11 September 1997, with 74% of those voting favouring the Government's proposals for a Scottish Parliament. A smaller majority of those voting supported the Parliament having the power to vary income tax in Scotland. The Scotland Act 1998 sets out the statutory framework of the devolution settlement and and under its authority the Scottish Executive and the Scottish Parliament took on their full executive and legislative powers on 1 July 1999.

There were 24 Secretaries of State for Scotland before devolution, the last being the late Donald Dewar. Following devolution he became the First Minister of Scotland, the head of the devolved administration.