Màiri McAllan appointed Cabinet Secretary for Education, Culture and Gaelic

Immediately following this month’s Scottish election, we wrote to First Minister John Swinney to make the case for culture to be secured at Cabinet Secretary level as the new Cabinet is formed. We outlined the risks of the remit for culture being demoted to a more junior Minister post, and made the case that a Cabinet Secretary-level post is essential in demonstrating culture's relevance across the full breadth of government.

Today, we are delighted to report that a post of Cabinet Secretary for Education, Culture and Gaelic has been confirmed as one of eight posts within a streamlined team of Cabinet Secretaries, “to deliver on the things that matter most to the people of Scotland”. Màiri McAllan, MSP for Clydesdale, has been appointed to this role. Ms McAllan has been an SNP MSP since May 2021 , and has formerly served as Cabinet Secretary for Housing (2025-2026), Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero and Energy (2024-2025), Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Net Zero and Just Transition (2023-2024), and Minister for Environment, Biodiversity and Land Reform (2021-2023).

Parliament will be asked to approve the new Cabinet appointments on Thursday, and other ministerial appointments will be announced “in due course”. Full details of the Cabinet appointments are available here.