Minister for Drugs and Alcohol Policy

Scottish Parliament
Scottish Government

Reports toScottish ParliamentSeatEdinburghAppointerFirst MinisterInaugural holderAngela Constance
Minister for Drugs PolicyFormation18 December 2020Salary£106,185 per annum (2024)^[1]
(including £72,196 MSP salary)Websitewww.gov.scot

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The Minister for Drugs and Alcohol Policy is a junior ministerial post in the Scottish Government. As a result, the minister does not attend the Scottish Cabinet but reports to the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care (Scotland) who does.^[2]^[3]

The incumbent Minister for Drugs and Alcohol Policy is Christina McKelvie, who was appointed in February 2024.^[4]

History

The office was created in December 2020 by First Minister Nicola Sturgeon following the resignation of Minister for Public Health, Joe FitzPatrick. His resignation was triggered by the figures released that showed Scotland again had the worst drug death rate in Europe.^[5] Sturgeon stated that her government had taken their "eye off the ball on drug deaths" and appointed Angela Constance to take on the new dedicated role as Minister for Drugs Policy.^[6]^[7]

Following the 2023 SNP leadership election, incumbent First Minister Humza Yousaf appointed Elena Whitham as the renamed Minister for Drugs and Alcohol Policy.^[8] On 7 February 2024, Whitham announced she resigning from the post due to her suffering from PTSD. ^[9] The following day, as part of a wider cabinet reshuffle, triggered by the resignation of Health Secretary, Michael Matheson, Yousaf appointed Christina McKelvie to the post. ^[10]

Overview

Responsibilities

The specific responsibilities of the minister are:^[2]

Tackling and reducing the harm of drug misuse
Supporting the rehabilitation and recovery of those living with drug addiction
Reducing the number of deaths from drugs

The responsibilities of the new Minister for Drugs and Alcohol Policy within the Yousaf government are still to be announced.

List of office holders

Name		Assumed office	Left office	Party	First Minister
Minister for Drugs Policy
	Angela Constance	18 December 2020	29 March 2023	Scottish National Party	Nicola Sturgeon
Minister for Drugs and Alcohol Policy
	Elena Whitham	29 March 2023	7 February 2024	Scottish National Party	Humza Yousaf
	Christina McKelvie	8 February 2024	Incumbent	Scottish National Party	Humza Yousaf John Swinney

References

^ "MSP salaries". parliament.scot. The Scottish Parliament. 10 May 2024.
^ ^a ^b "Minister for Drugs Policy". www.gov.scot. Scottish Government. Retrieved 22 December 2020.
^ Scotland Act (1998), Only those appointed under Section 47 of the Scotland Act "attend" Cabinet. Junior ministers are appointed under Section 49 and may be "present".
^ "Full ministerial team confirmed". www.gov.scot. Retrieved 30 March 2023.
^ "Drug deaths in Scotland: Minister Joe FitzPatrick loses job". BBC News. 18 December 2020. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
^ "Drug deaths in Scotland: Minister Joe FitzPatrick loses job". BBC News. 19 December 2020. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
^ "Sturgeon: We took our eye off the ball on drug deaths". HeraldScotland. Retrieved 7 June 2021.
^ "Full ministerial team confirmed". www.gov.scot. Retrieved 30 March 2023.
^ "Drugs minister Elena Whitham quits due to post-traumatic stress". BBC News. 6 February 2024. Retrieved 9 February 2024.
^ "Neil Gray replaces Michael Matheson as Scottish health secretary". BBC News. 8 February 2024. Retrieved 9 February 2024.

External links

Minister for Drugs Policy on Scottish Government website

v t e Scottish Junior Ministers
Swinney government
Tom Arthur (Employment and Investment) Siobhian Brown (Victims and Community Safety) Graeme Dey (Higher and Further Education; and Veterans) Natalie Don (Children, Young People and The Promise) Jim Fairlie (Agriculture and Connectivity) Jamie Hepburn (Parliamentary Business) Richard Lochhead (Business) Gillian Martin (Climate Action) Ivan McKee (Public Finance) Christina McKelvie (Drugs and Alcohol Policy) Paul McLennan (Housing) Jenni Minto (Public Health and Women's Health) Kaukab Stewart (Equalities) Maree Todd (Social Care, Mental Wellbeing and Sport)
Category Politics of Scotland