Scottish Government led by Nicola Sturgeon from November 2014
This article is about the people in Nicola Sturgeon's government. For the events of Nicola Sturgeon's tenure as First Minister, see Premiership of Nicola Sturgeon.
Following the defeat of the campaign for Scottish independence in a 2014 referendum, then First Minister Alex Salmond, who had arranged the referendum, announced that he would resign as Scottish National Party leader and first minister after a new leader was chosen.[1] Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon took the leadership unopposed at the SNP's annual conference on 14 November 2014. This also effectively made her First Minister-designate, given the SNP's outright majority in the Scottish Parliament. She was elected to succeed Salmond as First Minister by the Scottish Parliament on 19 November, and formally appointed by Queen Elizabeth II on the next day.[2]
On 21 November 2014 Sturgeon's first cabinet was announced. It was formed of ten people: Sturgeon and nine cabinet secretaries. It was gender-balanced with five men and five women.[3] There were thirteen junior ministerial positions outwith the cabinet.[4]