The Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice (Scottish Gaelic: Rùnaire a’ Chaibineit airson Ceartas Sòisealta), commonly referred to as the Social Justice Secretary, is a position in the Scottish Government Cabinet. The Cabinet Secretary has overall responsibility for local government, community planning, housing, social security, the third sector.
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The Cabinet Secretary is assisted by three junior Ministers, the Minister for Equalities, Migration and Refugees, Minister for Zero Carbon Buildings, Active Travel and Tenants Rights and the Minister for Housing.[2]
The current Cabinet Secretary is Shirley-Anne Somerville since 2023.
From 2007 to 2009 the Minister for Communities and Sport was a junior ministerial post in the Scottish Government. In 2009, sport was linked with public health and the role became the Minister for Housing and Communities.
Following the 2011 election, the role was reorganised as Minister for Housing and Welfare[3] but as a junior ministerial position, the Minister did not attend the Scottish Cabinet.[4]
A cabinet post was created in April 2014 as a result of Alex Salmond's gender-balancing cabinet reshuffle. The post was Cabinet Secretary for Commonwealth Games, Sport, Equalities and Pensioners' Rights with Shona Robison at the helm. This was short-lived, however, as the job was further restyled as Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice, Communities and Pensioners' Rights as a result of Nicola Sturgeon's first reshuffle after she became First Minister in November 2014, with Alex Neil being given the role.
This was further rebranded in May 2016 as Cabinet Secretary for Communities, Social Security and Equalities in the second Sturgeon government, and took on its current name at the start of the third Sturgeon government. Between 2018 and 2021 responsibility for social security was held by a separate cabinet-level post, the Cabinet Secretary for Social Security and Older People.[5]
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