Part of the debate – in the Scottish Parliament at on 1 February 2024.
The First Minister:
I tend to leave the verdict on trust to the people of Scotland.
Anas Sarwar is right. One of the major factors why the SNP is back in power is our handling of the pandemic. That was not judged—
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.
