Cabinet Secretary for Justice

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The Cabinet Secretary for Justice, commonly referred to as the Justice Secretary, is a cabinet position in the Scottish Government. 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 for Home and Health that existed prior to 1999.

The Cabinet Secretary for Justice is responsible for criminal law and procedure, youth justice, criminal justice social work, police, prisons and sentencing policy, legal aid, legal profession, courts and law reform, anti-social behaviour, sectarianism, human rights, fire and rescue services, community safety, civil contingencies, drugs policy and related matters, liquor licensing, vulnerable witnesses, victim support and civil law, charity law, religious and faith organisations.

The following executive agencies report to them:

• Accountant in Bankruptcy
• Scottish Prison Service
• Scottish Court Service

Unlike other justice ministers, such as the Attorney General for England and Wales, they do not have any oversight of the system of prosecutions in Scotland - these are handled by the Lord Advocate.

The current Cabinet Secretary for Justice is Kenny MacAskill who was appointed to the role after the Scottish Parliamentary Election of 2007.

Contents 1 List of office holders 1.1 Minister for Justice 1.2 Cabinet Secretary for Justice 2 See also 3 External links

[edit] List of office holders

[edit] Minister for Justice
		Name	Entered Office	Left Office	Party
	1.	Jim Wallace	16 May 1999	20 May 2003	Liberal Democrats
	2.	Cathy Jamieson	20 May 2003	16 May 2007	Labour Party
[edit] Cabinet Secretary for Justice
	3.	Kenny MacAskill	16 May 2007	Incumbent	Scottish National Party

[edit] See also

• Politics of Scotland
• Scottish Government
• Scottish Parliament

[edit] External links

• Scottish Government Justice Department

v • d • e      Scottish Cabinet Alex Salmond (First Minister) · Nicola Sturgeon (Deputy First Minister and Health and Wellbeing) · John Swinney (Finance and Sustainable Growth) · Fiona Hyslop (Education and Lifelong Learning) · Kenny MacAskill (Justice) · Richard Lochhead (Rural Affairs and the Environment)