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Keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland

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Keeper of the
Great Seal of Scotland
Neach-gleidhidh Seula Mòr na h-Alba (Scottish Gaelic)
Royal Coat of Arms used by the Monarch in Scotland

Flag of Scotland

Royal Banner of Scotland
Incumbent
John Swinney
since 8 May 2024
Scottish Government
Crown Estate Scotland
Registers of Scotland
StatusGreat Officer of State in Scotland
Member ofPrivy Council
Scottish Government
Scottish Cabinet
ResidenceBute House
AppointerThe Monarch
Term lengthWhilst serving as first minister
Formation1389
First holderSir Alexander de Cockburn
(1389–1396)
Unofficial namesKeeper of the Seal of Scotland
Keeper of the Scottish Seal
Deputy
WebsiteRegisters of the Great Seal

The keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland (Scottish Gaelic: Neach-gleidhidh Seula Mòr na h-Alba) is one of the great officers of state in Scotland held concurrently with the post of first minister of Scotland. The office holder is the keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland, the seal used by the sitting monarch to sign acts of the Scottish Parliament and permits the keeper to make decisions on behalf of the monarch.[1] The incumbent keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland is John Swinney since 8 May 2024.[2]

Under the terms of a royal warrant of 1818,[3] the Keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland, the Lord Clerk Register, the Lord Advocate, and the Lord Justice Clerk are ex-officio Commissioners for the Keeping of the Regalia.[4] Since 1996, the commissioners have also been empowered by another royal warrant for the safekeeping of the Stone of Scone and for the arrangement of its return to Westminster Abbey for the next British coronation.[5]

Whilst Scotland was an independent sovereign country as the Kingdom of Scotland, the post was formerly known as keeper of the Seal of the Kingdom of Scotland. The Keeper of the Registers of Scotland is the Deputy Keeper of the Great Seal, and ultimately responsible for its use. The Register of the Great Seal is the oldest national record in Scotland.[6]

History

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Further information: Kingdom of Scotland, Treaty of Union, and Scottish devolution

The Chancellor of Scotland had the custody of the King's Seal.[7] The first recorded office holder was Sir Alexander de Cockburn in 1389. The Act of Union passed in 1707 to create the United Kingdom of Great Britain, resulting in both the Kingdom of Scotland and Kingdom of England relinquishing their independence, abolished the Great Seal of Scotland. Following this, a different seal was created in order to be used in relation to documents that had, up until the Act of Union 1707, usually passed the Great Seal. The replacement seal is commonly referred to as the Great Seal, or the Scottish Seal, today.[6]

The continuation of a seal was one of the guaranteed elements in the Treaty of Union. The guarantee set out in the Act of Union provided that “a Seal in Scotland after the Union be always kept and made use of in all things relating to private Rights or Grants which have usually passed the Great Seal of Scotland, and which only concern Offices, Grants, Commissions, and private Rights within that Kingdom". The Scotland Act 1998 references the current seal of Scotland as “the seal appointed by the Treaty of Union to be kept and made use of in place of the Great Seal of Scotland".[8]

The first Keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland post Treaty of Union in 1707 was Hugh Campbell, 3rd Earl of Loudoun (1708–1713).

Appointment and functions

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First Minister

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Main article: First Minister of Scotland

Until the re-establishment of the Scottish Parliament in 1999, the Keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland was usually the Secretary of State for Scotland until the responsibility passed to the First Minister of Scotland. In April 2023, First Minister Humza Yousaf, in his capacity as the Keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland, oversaw the departure of the Stone of Scone, an ancient symbol of Scotland's nationhood, for Westminster Abbey for usage in the Coronation of Charles III and Camilla on 6 May.[9]

All incumbent First Ministers assume the role of Keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland. As Deputy Keeper of the Great Seal, the Keeper of the Registers of Scotland is required to attend the ceremonial appointment of the first minister to the position of the Keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland, and to ensure that the Seal of Scotland is present during the ceremonial appointment. Once appointed as Keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland, the office holder has the authority to make decisions on behalf of the monarch which allows the first minister as Keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland to lead the country with the support of the Scottish Parliament in the name of the incumbent Monarch.[1]

Appointment

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John Swinney being sworn in as First Minister and Keeper of the Great Seal at the Court of Session

The ceremonial appointing of the Keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland takes place at the Court of Session in Edinburgh, witnessed by senior judges with the Seal of Scotland being present. During the ceremonial appointment, the first minister, as the nominee to the position, signs a parchment and takes an oath of allegiance, as set out in the Promissory Oaths Act 1868, and promises to serve the monarch during their tenure as both First Minister and Keeper of the Scottish Seal.[10]

Upon appointment as keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland, the office holder commands authority to make decisions on behalf of the reigning monarch in the name of the crown. As such, as the keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland is also the incumbent first minister of Scotland and leader of the Scottish Government, they can make decisions regarding the country with the backing of the Scottish Parliament and the monarch whilst serving as keeper of the Great Seal.[11]

Storage and usage of the seal

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Main article: Great Seal of Scotland

When not being used for ceremonial purposes, the Great Seal of Scotland is kept at Meadowbank House in Edinburgh.[12]

The Great Seal of Scotland is applied to documents as authorised by the Monarch. The Great Seal of Scotland is used to cast a wax seal, which is applied to official documents and acts of law as part of their authentication and approval by the Monarch. The Great Seal of Scotland features the reigning monarch on one side, while the other side shows the Royal Arms as used by the Monarch in Scotland.

Within the Treason Act 1708, Section 12 makes it an act of treason in Scotland to counterfeit the seal.[8]

Responsibilities of office

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The Keeper of the Great Seal of Scotland has an overview and responsibility of the following operations and departments in Scotland:

List of office holders

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This article is part of a series within the
Politics of the United Kingdom on the
Politics of Scotland
The Crown

Charles III

William, Duke of Rothesay

Executive

Swinney government

The Rt Hon John Swinney MSP

Kate Forbes MSP

Legislature

Sixth session

Alison Johnstone MSP

Law and justice

Angela Constance MSP

Dorothy Bain KC

The Rt Hon Lord Carloway KC PC

Elections and referendums
Scottish Parliament elections

United Kingdom Parliament elections

European Parliament elections

Local elections

Referendums
Scotland and the United Kingdom

Sunak ministry

The Rt Hon Keir Starmer MP

The Rt Hon Ian Murray MP

Administration

Kingdom of Scotland

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Great Seal of Scotland

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The following are keepers of the Great Seal who served as secretaries for Scotland (1885–1926).

The Great Seal of Scotland during the Premiership of Nicola Sturgeon

The following are keepers of the Great Seal who served as secretaries of state for Scotland (1926–1999).

The office of the Keeper of the Great Seal was transferred on 6 May 1999, to the First Minister, in accordance with the terms of section 45(7) of the Scotland Act 1998.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b "The Keeper". insideros.blog. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
  2. ^ "John Swinney is sworn in as Scotland's first minister". BBC News. 8 May 2024. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
  3. ^ "Scottish Regalia". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Vol. 1. United Kingdom: House of Commons. 26 March 1981. col. 395W.
  4. ^ "Stone of Destiny to stay in Edinburgh Castle". The Herald. 14 December 2006. Retrieved 1 September 2018.
  5. ^ "20 lesser known facts about the Stone of Destiny". Edinburgh Castle. 30 November 2016. Retrieved 1 September 2018.
  6. ^ a b "Register of the Great Seal". ros.gov.uk. Registers of Scotland. Retrieved 28 December 2023.
  7. ^ See list for years AD1057-1794, pp. 78–82 in "A political index to the histories of Great Britain and Ireland" by Robert Beatson: https://archive.org/stream/apoliticalindex02beatgoog#page/n88/mode/2up
  8. ^ a b "First minister election: What is the Scottish Seal?". Thenational.scot. The National. Retrieved 28 December 2023.
  9. ^ "Yousaf: I'll be making sure Stone of Destiny comes back to Scotland". 27 April 2023.
  10. ^ "The Keeper". insideros.blog. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
  11. ^ "First Minister swearing in ceremony". Registers of Scotland. Retrieved 16 November 2024.
  12. ^ "The Keeper". insideros.blog. Retrieved 27 April 2024.
  13. ^ Article on the Cockburn family, retrieved 17 April 2012
  14. ^ "Records of the Parliaments of Scotland". www.rps.ac.uk.
  15. ^ (Chalmers, George, 1742-1825. The Life of Mary, Queen of Scots: Drawn From the State Papers, With Subsidiary Memoirs. 2d ed., corr. and enl. London: J. Murray, 1822: Voir volume 3, p.153).
  16. ^ "Sir Richard Maitland, Lord Lethington - Scottish poet".
  17. ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Spottiswoode, John" . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 25 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
  18. ^ a b Barker, George Fisher Russell (1886). "Campbell, John (1598-1663)" . In Stephen, Leslie (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 8. London: Smith, Elder & Co. p. 365.
  19. ^ "No. 16018". The London Gazette. 11 April 1807. p. 450.
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