Scotland's Viceroys

'Ms Boothroyd, drawing on the work of the Procedure Committee, has ruled that the Scottish and Welsh Secretaries cannot answer questions on the details of devolved matters. Neither can they answer on reserved matters that are the responsibility of other UK Ministers. One wonders what is left to discuss.'
Herald Editorial, 13 th July 1999.

Secretaries of State and other political rulers of Scotland since 1660

The Rt Hon Michael Forsyth MP, Secretary of State for Scotland, (later Lord Forsyth of Drumlean) and Lord James Douglas Hamilton MP (later an MSP, Earl of Selkirk, and Lord Douglas of Selkirk) prepare to receive the Stone of Scone back to Scotland

The post of Secretary of State for Scotland was abolished, albeit briefly, on the 13 th June 2003. The post had been abolished before, back in 1747, after the '45 Jacobite rebellion, by the Hanovarian Government.

Between the Union of the Crowns in 1603, and the Union of the Parliaments in 1707, Scotland was generally governed through the Scots Privy Council. During the Commonwealth, Scotland was under English military occupation and General George Monck was the Military Governor of Scotland. After the restoration of the monarchy in 1660, John Maitland, the 1 st Earl and from 1672, 1 st Duke of Lauderdale, was appointed as Charles II's Secretary of State for Scotland.

The post lapsed with the resignation of the highly unpopular Lauderdale due to ill health in 1679, and on the 24 th of November 1679, James, Duke of Albany & York, the younger brother of Charles II and heir presumptive, was appointed the King's Viceroy of Scotland.

It was not until until 1705, that the post of Secretary of State for Scotland was resurrected when Queen Anne appointed John Erskine, 6 th Earl of Mar to the position.

Mar's successor, the Duke of Queenberry, died in office and the post was left vacant for over two years until Mar was re-appointed by a dying Queen Anne. However, upon the succession of the Elector of Hanover, Mar was sacked and went on to raise the stardard of the Stuart heir, James VIII in 1714.

Mar was succeeded briefly by the Duke of Montrose and then the Duke of Roxburghe, leader of the Squadrone.After Roxburgh's resignation in 1725, no Secretary of State was appointed and Scotland was governed by a Minister for Scotland without portfolio, Archibald Campbell, 1 st Earl of Ilay, later 3 rd Duke of Argyll.

In 1742, the Marquis of Tweedale was appointed as Secretary of State for Scotland, but the second Jacobite 'rebellion' resulted in the post being abolished.

From 1745 until 1827, in Scotland, the chief minister of the Crown was the Lord Advocate. One of the most powerful was Henry Dundas who used the patronage system to control no less than 34 of the 45 Scottish MPs.

From 1827 until until 1885, the British Home Secretary was responsible for Scottish affairs. Following demands for more autonomy, in 1881, an Under Secretary at the Home Office was given responsibility for Scottish affairs.

Four years later, in 1885, the office of State for Scotland was restored by the Tories. As can be seen from a letter written by the Tory Prime Minister Lord Sailsbury, to the Duke of Gordon, the work load was similar to that of Des Browne in 2008:

'The work is not very heavy - the dignity (measured by salary) is the same as your present office - but measured by the expectations of the people of Scotland it is approaching the Arch-angelic... It really is a matter where the effulgence of two Dukedoms and the best salmon river in Scotland will go a long way.'

Ironically, in the past, it was the Unionist Tories rather than the Labour and Liberal parties, who professed to support Home Rule, who were responsible for much of the constitutional reform in Scotland. It was the Tories who restored the office of Scottish Secretary in 1885. The Secretary assumed powers which were previously held by the Lord Advocate, until then the government's chief minister in Scotland. And in 1926, it was the Tories who upgraded the post of Scottish Secretary to that of Secretary of State for Scotland with a seat in the UK cabinet. In 1937, it was the Tory Secretary of State, Walter Elliott achieved the transfer much of the work of the Scottish Office from London to St Andrew's House in Edinburgh.

There has always been considerable doubt whether the Secretary of State's primary function was to be Scotland's voice in the cabinet, or the cabinet's voice in Scotland. During 1979-1997, when Conservative administrations governed Scotland against the wishes of the vast majority of Scots, the holders of the post were accused of being the latter. In 1984 Thatcher's Secretary of State for Scotland, George Younger, threatened to resign if Ravenscraig rolling mills were scrapped, and Ravenscraig survived, only to be closed in 1992.

In 1991, while Ian Lang was Secretary of State, the Tories lost the Kincardine & Deeside by-election to the Liberal Democrats. This meant that the governing party was in third place in terms of numbers of MPs (9/72) after Labour (49/72) and the Liberal Democrats (10/72).

Michael Forsyth was the last Conservative Secretary of State for Scotland. Yet in the 1992 General Election the Tories won only 25.77 % of the vote and 11 of the 72 Scottish Constituencies. In October 1996, the Conservatives were standing at 13 % in the System 3 poll for the Herald.

In the 13 elections between 1945 and and 1997, only six serving cabinet Ministers had lost their seats in the whole of the United Kingdom. At the general election of 1 st May 1997, no less than three Cabinet Ministers lost their seats in Scotland alone (and a further 4 in England and Wales). The Conservative Secretary of State for Scotland, Michael Forsyth, the two previous Scottish Secretaries, Ian Lang and Malcolm Rifkind, and every other Scottish Tory lost their seats. The Tories had never before failed to win a single seat in Scotland. This meant that they had been totally wiped out in Scotland at all levels of government with no MPs, no MEPs - and despite blatant gerrymandering - no local councils under their control.

Following the election, many were surprised to see the late Donald Dewar appointed as Secretary of State for Scotland rather than the Shadow Secretary of State, George Robertson. However, Dewar's appointment was a logical one. Unlike certain of his predecessors, Mr Dewar had always been a strong supporter of devolution. Despite Labour's massive majority it required a steady and competent hand at the wheel to steer the necessary legislation through Westminster.

Following the Yes Yes vote on September 11 th 1997, a Scottish parliament was elected on 6 th May 1999 and assumed its responsibilities on 1 st June 1999. Donald Dewar became the first First Minister of Scotland and resigned his post as Secretary of State for Scotland. The Scottish Office was transferred to the Scottish Parliament, with a new organisation, the Scotland Office, taking over those matters not devolved to the Scottish parliament Dewar was the last Secretary of State for Scotland with full powers and subsequently the office of Secretary of State for Scotland became a largerly honorific post, but still very expensive to run.

Dewar was replaced, not by his favoured successor and Deputy, Helen Liddell, but by Dr John Reid. Reid was likened to the janitor of a bankrupt company whose offices were about to close down. He headed a much reduced Scottish Office and acted as the Cabinet's man in Scotland, being transferred to a more significant job in Northern Ireland in January 2001 following Peter Mandelson's second resignation.

On the 28 th July 1998, a new post of Deputy Secretary of State for Scotland was created. The holder of the post, Helen Liddell, was expected to succeed Donald Dewar as Secretary of State for Scotland but was instead moved (briefly) to Transport on the 17 th May 1999. On 29 th July 1999, Brian Wilson returned to the Scottish or 'Scotland' Office as it is now called, as deputy to John Reid.

On 24 th January 2001, following the second fall from grace of Peter Mandelson, John Reid was moved to the Northern Ireland Office. Brian Wilson was Tony Blair's preferred candidate for Secretary of State for Scotland but due to his personal incompatability with the Scottish First Minister, Henry McLeish, Helen Liddell was instead appointed Secretary of State for Scotland. Liddell is the author of a bodice ripping novel called Elite, about the sexually smouldering Anne Clark who becomes the first woman Secretary of State Scotland. Sometimes truth is stranger than fiction!

On 25 th January 2001, Brian Wilson was moved to the Foreign Office and George Foulkes became Deputy Secretary of State for Scotland. Foulkes risked the wrath of superiors by his support for abolishing the link between the numbers of Scottish Westminster and Holyrood MPs which had been imposed by the Scotland Act. Helen Liddell also supported this against the wishes of the vaste majority of Labour MPs.

In October 2002, Foulkes, a Minister of State, was sacked and replaced with Anne McGuire, who was appointed Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Scotland. The title of 'Deputy Secretary of State for Scotland' fell into disuse.

In January 2003 a House of Lords committee recommended that the post be merged with that of Welsh secretary and that the Deputy Prime Minister handle communications with the devolved parliaments. On 12 th June 2003, the office of Secretary of State for Scotland was abolished and with the new Secretary of State for Constitutional Affairs assuming responsability for Scoland, Wales, and the Lord Chancellor's office.

However, on the 14 th of June, the office of Secretary of State for Scottland was resurrected and given as an additional, part-time responsibility to the Rt Hon Alistair Darling, Secretary of State for Transport. Douglas Alexander succeeded in 2006, but was moved after being blamed by Labour MSPs for the voting scandal at the 2007 Scottish elections where almost 150,000 people were disenfranchised. His successor was Des Browne, Secretary of State for Defence, whose dual role has been attacked as 'an insult' by ex defence chiefs. In fact, Gordon Brown stated in the House of Commons that the office of Secretary of State was an honorary title and that the de facto head of the Scotland Office was the Minister of State for Scotland, Father David Cairns MP.

David Cairns resigned as Minister of State on the 16 th September 2008. On the 3 rd October Des Brown was sacked as Secretary of State for Defence and resigned as Secretary of State for Scotland.

In his place, Jim Murphy was installed as a full time Secretary of State. The new full-time appointment was seen as more a political rather than governmental post and it was believed that Murphy would devote most of his time to attacking the Scottish Government. Murphy, more than any appointee in the past, will be Westminster's man in Scotland rather than Scotland's man in Westminster.

Indeed, on the 31 st October 2008 Murphy was accused of provoking a 'diplomatic incident' with Norway following his quoting and embellishment of 'incorrect and misleading' comments during Scottish Questions in the House of Commons.
The Ambassador of Norway, Bjarne Lindstrøm issued a statement:
'The article "Salmond Slapped down by Norway Minister" in the Daily Mail on 29 October contained several incorrect and misleading statements attributed to Norway's Foreign Minister, Jonas Gahr Støre.
'Firstly, there is no "growing anger in Norway" over comparisons made between Scotland and Norway during the debate in the United Kingdom against the backdrop of the current global financial crisis.
'Secondly, no accusations have been made by Mr Støre against Mr Salmond, as alleged in the article. In the interview, the Foreign Minister merely pointed out factual similarities and differences between the challenges presently faced by Scotland and Norway. Inferring from this that Mr Støre is of the view that Mr Salmond has in any way lied or mislead the public, is simply incorrect.
'In short, the Norwegian Foreign Minister did not intend to criticise either side in this debate, which is a domestic political discussion. What he strongly emphasised in the interview with the Daily Mail and which, sadly, was simply omitted from the article, was his sincere appreciation of the warm ongoing relationship between Scotland and Norway.'

On the 4 th February 2009, Jim Murphy was reprimanded by the Speaker of the House of Commons for using Scottish Questions to attack the Scottish Government.

On the 12 th May 2010, Danny Alexander was appointed Secretary of State for Scotland, the first Liberal/Liberal Democrat to hold the post since the 6 th Earl of Rosebery in 1945. He was also the shortest ever serving Scottish Secretary, replacing David Laws as Chief Secretary to the Treasury on the 29 th May 2010 following the latter's resignation due to an expenses scandal. Alexander was replaced as Scottish Secretary by the Deputy Leader of the Scottish Lib Dems, Michael Moore MP.

Since 1660, the post of Secretary or Secretary of State for Scotland has been held by:

Secretaries of State for Scotland, 1660 - 1725

Date	Secretary of State	Party
1660 - 1679	John Maitland, 1 st Duke of Lauderdale
1679 - 1705	Post abolished
1705 - 3 rd February 1709	John Erskine, 6 th Earl of Mar	Whig, but later leader of the 1714 Jacobite 'rebellion')
3 rd February 1709 - 6 th July 1711	James Douglas, 2 nd Duke of Queensberry
6 th July 1711 - 30 th September 1713	Post vacant
30 th September 1713 - 24 th September 1714	John Erskine, 6 th Earl of Mar	Whig, but later leader of the 1714 Jacobite 'rebellion')
24 th September 1714 - August 1715	James Graham, 1 st Duke of Montrose
August 1715 - 13 th December 1716	Post vacant
13 th December 1716 - August 1725	John Ker, 1 st Duke of Roxburghe	Squadrone (Whig)

Minister for Scotland without portfolio, 1725 - 1742

August 1725 - February 1742

Archibald Campbell, 1 st Earl of Ilay, later 3 rd Duke of Argyll

Whig

Secretaries of State for Scotland, 1742 - 1746

16 th February 1742 - 3 rd January 1746

John Hay, 4 th Marquis of Tweeddale

Squadrone (Whig)

Lord Advocates of Scotland, 1746 - 1827

	1746 - 1754	William Grant MP, later Lord Prestongrange
	1754 - 1760	Robert Dundas MP, later Lord Arniston
	1760 - 1766	Sir Thomas Miller MP Bt, later Lord Glenlee
	1766 - 1775	Sir James Montgomery MP Bt
	1775 - 1783	Henry Dundas, 1 st Viscount Melville
	1783	Hon. Henry Erskine
	1784 - 1789	Sir Ilay Campbell of Succoth, Lord Succoth
	1789 - 1801	Robert Dundas of Arniston, MP
	1801 - 1804	Charles Hope MP, Lord Granton
	1804 - 1806	Sir James Montgomery Bt MP
	1806 - 1807	Hon. Henry Erskine
	1807 - 1816	Archibald Campbell Colquhoun MP
	1807 - 1816	Alexander Maconochie MP, Lord Meadowbank
	1819 - 1830	Sir William Rae Bt, MP

British Home Secretaries, 1827 - 1885

30 th April 1827 - 16 July 1827	Rt Hon William Bourne MP	Tory
16 th July 1827 - 22 nd January 1828	Henry Petty-Fitzmaurice, 3 rd Marquess of Lansdowne	Whig
26 th January 1828 - 22 nd November 1830	Rt Hon Sir Robert Peel Bt, MP	Tory
22 nd November 1830 - 16 th July 1834	William Lamb, 2 nd Viscount Melbourne	Whig
19 th July 1834 - 15 th November 1834	John Wiliam Ponsonby, Viscount Duncannon, later 4 th Earl of Bessborough	Whig
15 th November 1834 - 15 th December 1834	His Grace, Arthur Wellesley, 1 st Duke of Wellington KG KP GCB GCH	Tory
15 th December 1834 - 18 th April 1835	Rt Hon Henry Goulburn MP	Tory
18 th April 1835 - 30 th August 1839	Rt Hon John Russell, 1 st Earl Russell	Whig
30 th August 1839 - 30 August 1841	Constantine Phipps, 1 st Marquess of Normanby	Whig
6 th September 1841 - 30 th June 1846	Rt Hon Sir James Graham, Bt. MP	Tory
8 th July 1846 - 23 rd February 1852	Rt Hon Sir George Grey, Bt. MP	Whig
27 th February 1852 - 19 th December 1852	Rt Hon Spencer Horatio Walpole MP	Tory
28 th December 1852 - 6 th February 1855	Henry Temple, 3 rd Viscount Palmerston	Whig
8 th February 1855 - 26 th February 1858	Rt Hon Sir George Grey, Bt. MP	Whig
26 th February 1858 - 3 rd March 1859	Rt Hon Spencer Horatio Walpole MP	Tory
3 rd March 1859 - 18 th June 1859	Rt Hon Thomas Henry Sutton Sotheron-Estcourt MP	Whig
18 th June 1859 - 25 th July 1861	Sir George Cornewall Lewis, Bt MP	Liberal
25 th July 1861 - 28 th June 1866	Rt Hon Sir George Grey, Bt. MP	Whig
6 th July 1866 - 17 th May 1867	Rt Hon Spencer Horatio Walpole MP	Tory
17 th May 1867 - 3 rd December 1868	Gathorne Hardy, 1 st Earl of Cranbrook	Whig
9 th December 1868 - 9 th August 1873	Henry Austin Bruce, later 1 st Lord Aberdare GCB, PC, FRS	Liberal
9 th August 1873 - 20 th February 1874	Robert Lowe, later 1 st Viscount Sherbrooke	Liberal
21 st February 1874 - 23 rd April 1880	Richard Assheton Cross, later 1 st Viscount Cross	Tory
28 th April 1880 - 23 rd June 1885	Sir William George Granville Venables Vernon Harcourt MP	Whig
24 th June 1885 - 1 st February 1886	Richard Assheton Cross, later 1 st Viscount Cross	Tory

Under Secretary of State at the Home Office with responsibility for Scotland 1881 - 1883

This was a new office that was created by Gladstone in the Home Office with an Under Secretary responsible for Scottish business. The Earl of Rosebery was offered the position of Minister for Scotland in 1883, but refused as the post was not in the cabinet, and he resigned. Rosebery became Prime Minister from 1894 to 1895.

Photo	Date	Under Secretary of State	Party
	August 1881 - June 1883	Rt Hon Archibald Philip Primrose, 5th Earl of Rosebery, KG	Liberal
	June 1883 - August 1885	?

Secretaries for Scotland, 1885 - 1926

Date	Secretaries for Scotland	Party
17 th August 1885 - 28 th January 1886	Rt Hon Charles Henry Gordon-Lennox, 6 th Duke of Richmond & Lennox, 1 st Duke of Gordon KG	Conservative
12 th February 1886 - 6 th April 1886	Rt Hon George Otto Trevelyan, later Sir George Otto Trevelyan Bt.	Liberal
7 th April 1886 - 2 nd August 1886	Rt Hon John William Ramsay, 13 th Earl of Dalhousie KT	Liberal
5 th August 1886 - 11 th March 1887	Rt Hon Arthur James Balfour (later 1 st Earl of Balfour)	Conservative
11 th March 1887 - 11 th August 1892	Hon Schomberg Henry Kerr, 9 th Marquis of Lothian	Conservative
18 th August 1892 - 21 st June 1895	Rt Hon Sir George Otto Trevelyan Bt.	Liberal
29 th June 1895 - 6 th October 1903	Rt Hon Alexander Bruce, 6 th Lord Balfour of Burleigh	Conservative
6 th October 1903 - 2 nd February 1905	Rt Hon Andrew Graham Murray, later 1 st Viscount Dunedin of Stenton	Conservative
2 nd February 1905 - 10 th December 1905	Rt Hon John Adrian Louis Hope, 1 st Marquis of Linlithgow KT GCVO GCMG	Conservative
10 th December 1905 - 13 th February 1912	Rt Hon John Sinclair, 1 st Lord Pentland	Liberal
13 th February 1912 - 9 th July 1916	Rt Hon Thomas McKinnon Wood	Liberal
9 th July 1916 - 10 th December 1916	Rt Hon Harold John Tennant	Coalition
10 th December 1916 - 24 th October 1922	Rt Hon Robert Munro (later 1 st Lord Alness)	Coalition
24 th October 1922 - 22 nd January 1924	Rt Hon Sir Ronald Crauford Munro-Ferguson, 1 st Viscount Novar GCMG	Liberal
22 nd January 1924 - 6 th November 1924	Rt Hon William Adamson	Labour
6 th November 1924 - 26 th July 1926	Rt Hon Sir John Gilmour Bt DSO	Conservative

Secretaries of State for Scotland 1926 - 1999

Date	Secretary of State	Party	MPs
26 th July 1926 - 7 th June 1929	Rt Hon Sir John Gilmour Bt DSO	Conservative
Rt Hon 7 th June 1929 - 25 th August 1931	William Adamson	Labour
25 th August 1931 - 28 th September 1932	Rt Hon Sir Archibald Sinclair Bt CMG (later 1st Viscount Thurso)	National Government
28 th September 1932 - 29 th October 1936	Rt Hon Sir Godfrey Collins (National Liberal)	National Government
29 th October 1936 - 16 th May 1938	Rt Hon Walter Elliot MC (Conservative)	National Government
16 th May 1938 - 14 th May 1940	Rt Hon David John Colville, later 1 st Lord Clydesmuir (Conservative)	National Government
14 th May 1940 - 8 th February 1941	Rt Hon Ernest Brown MC (National Liberal)	Coalition
8 th February 1941 - 25 th May 1945	Rt Hon Tom Johnston (Labour)	Coalition
25 th May - 3 rd July 1945	Rt Hon Albert Edward Harry Mayer Archibald Primrose, DSO MC, 6 th Earl of Rosebery (National Liberal)	Caretaker
3 rd August 1945 - 7 th October 1947	Rt Hon Joseph Westwood	Labour	40/71
7 th October 1947 - 28 th February 1950	Rt Hon Arthur Woodburn	Labour	40/71
28 th February 1950 - 30 th October 1951	Rt Hon Hector MacNeil	Labour	37/71
30 th October 1951 - 13 th January 1957	Rt Hon James Stuart MVO MC (later Viscount Stuart of Findhorn)	Conservative	35/71
13 th January 1957 - 13 th July 1962	Rt Hon John Scott Maclay CH CMG (later 1 st Viscount Muirshiel of Kilmacolm)	Conservative	36/71
13 th July 1962 - 18 th October 1964	Rt Hon Michael Anthony Cristobal Noble (later Baron Glenkinglas)	Conservative	32/71
18 th October 1964 - 19 th June 1970	Rt Hon William Ross MBE (later Baron Ross of Marnock)	Labour	43/71
19 th June 1970 - 5 th March 1974	Rt Hon Gordon Thomas Calthrop Campbell (later Baron Campbell of Croy)	Conservative	23/71
5 th March 1974 - 8 th April 1976	Rt Hon William Ross MBE (later Baron Marnock)	Labour	40/71
8 th April 1976 - 5 th May 1979	Rt Hon Bruce Millan (later EEC Commissioner)	Labour	41/71
5 th May 1979 - 11 th January 1986	Rt Hon George Kenneth Hotson Younger TD (later Baron Younger of Prestwick, later 4 th Viscount Younger of Leckie)	Conservative	22/71
11 th January 1986 - 28 th November 1990	Rt Hon Malcolm Leslie Rifkind (later Sir Malcolm Rifkind)	Conservative	21/72
28 th November 1990 - 6 th July 1994	Rt Hon Ian Bruce Lang (later Lord Lang of Monkton)	Conservative	10/72
6 th July 1994 - 2 nd May 1997	Rt Hon Michael Bruce Forsyth (later Lord Forsyth of Drumlean)	Conservative	11/72
3 rd May 1997 - 17 th May 1999	Rt Hon Donald Campbell Dewar (later First Minister of Scotland)	Labour	56/72

Secretaries of State for Scotland 1999 - 2003

Photo	Date	Secretary of State	Party	MPs
	17 th May 1999 - 24 th January 2001	Rt Hon Dr John Reid	Labour	54/72
	24 th January 2001 - 12 th June 2003	Rt Hon Helen Lawrie Liddell	Labour	55/72

Secretaries of State for Scotland (part-time post) 2003 - 2008

Date	Secretary of State	Party	MPs
14 th June 2003 - 5 th May 2006	Rt Hon Alistair Darling (Also Secretary of State for Transport)	Labour	55/72
5 th May 2006 - 28 th June 2007	Rt Hon Douglas Garven Alexander (Also Secretary of State for Transport)	Labour	39/59
28 th June 2007 - 3 rd October 2008	Rt Hon Desmond Browne (Also Secretary of State for Defence)	Labour	39/59

Secretaries of State for Scotland 2008 -

Date	Secretary of State	Party	MPs
3 rd October 2008 - 11 th May 2010	Rt Hon Jim Murphy	Labour	37/59
12 th May 2010 - 29 th May 2010	Rt Hon Danny Alexander	Liberal Democrat	12/59 (11 Lib Dems, 1 Tory)
29 th May 2010 -	Rt Hon Michael Moore	Liberal Democrat	12/59 (11 Lib Dems, 1 Tory)

Deputy Secretaries of State for Scotland 1998 - 2002

This was a new office that was created on the 28 th July 1998 and abolished on the 28 th October 2002.

Date	Deputy Secretary of State	Party
28 th July 1998 - 17 th May 1999	Helen Lawrie Liddell	Labour
17 th May 1999 - 29 th July 1999	Interregnum
29 th July 1999 - 25 th January 2001	Brian Wilson	Labour
25 th January 2001 - 28 th October 2002	George Foulkes (later Lord Foulkes of Cumnock and an MSP)	Labour