Since 1999, Scotland has seen majority government, minority government, coalition government and government under a formal cooperation agreement.
This blog explains why and how different political parties can work together under different models to form a government and highlights previous examples.
Why look to other parties?
There are 129 MSPs elected to the Scottish Parliament. To gain a majority a party needs to see 65 MSPs returned. A party with a clear majority of seats would likely form a majority government. This means that they have enough members to pass legislative and other proposals which require the backing of parliament.
For any party that does not hold a majority of the seats, there are options to ensure confidence they can pass budgets and legislation as required. Sometimes, a minority government will be formed. In this circumstance, a party may have confidence that it can make ad hoc alliances with other parties to pass budgets and legislation
Alternatively, a minority government could seek agreement with another party or parties to ensure a parliamentary majority as required. This can include forming a cooperation agreement or choosing to form a more formal coalition.
The cooperation agreement model
What is a cooperation agreement?
In general, ‘cooperation agreement’ refers to an agreement between a party of government and another party, which falls short of formal coalition.
These can differ greatly in extent, from limited confidence and supply agreements (where a party supports the Government on motions of confidence in the government and on government spending) to more comprehensive agreements which include the junior (smaller) party holding Ministerial positions.
Limited cooperation agreements
Limited cooperation agreements do not have a set model, and are the least comprehensive cooperation agreements a minority government might consider. Often, they are agreed on the basis of ‘confidence and supply’ – but not always.
Following the 2007 Scottish general election, the SNP and the Scottish Green Party signed a limited cooperation agreement which fell short of the usual confidence and supply model. The agreement saw the SNP government agree to back a climate change bill and nominate a Green Party MSP as Convener of a Scottish Parliament Committee.
In return, the two Green MSPs supported the nomination of the leader of the SNP as First Minister and supported other Ministerial nominations made by the SNP. The Green MSPs were not, however, bound to support the SNP minority government on issues of confidence or supply beyond those nominations.
Confidence and supply agreement
A confidence and supply agreement is a form of limited cooperation agreement, whereby a party with a minority government reaches agreement with another party (or parties) to secure a parliamentary majority on issues of confidence in the government and budget/spending priorities (supply). The issues of confidence and supply are critical to a government’s survival.
The junior party in such an agreement will usually secure government support for a specific policy priority or priorities in return for supporting the government on these issues. A recent UK example was the agreement between the minority Conservative Party UK Government and the Democratic Unionist Party ‘on support for the Government in Parliament’ signed in 2017.
Comprehensive cooperation agreements
In addition to limited cooperation agreements, including those based on the confidence and supply model, more comprehensive cooperation agreements can be reached. Such agreements fall short of full coalition agreements where two or more parties form a coalition government, but they may include the junior party gaining Ministerial positions. The shape and scope of each agreement is unique and how they work in practice can differ. An agreement of this kind is likely to make clear in which policy areas the parties are going to work together, and the limits of cooperation.
The first cooperation agreement in Scotland
The then Scottish Government and the Scottish Green Parliamentary Party (‘the Greens’) entered into a cooperation agreement (often referred to as the “Bute House Agreement”) in Session 6. This was the first of its type since devolution in Scotland.
The cooperation agreement set out how the Scottish Government and the Greens intended to work together over the course of the duration of the Session 6 Parliament.
What was the Scottish Government-Green cooperation agreement?
The Scottish Government-Greens cooperation agreement was a commitment to work together for the Session 6 Parliament. It was announced on 20 August 2021 and subsequently ratified by the Scottish Green Party and the national executive committee of the Scottish National Party (SNP). SNP members also backed the agreement in a consultative ballot.
Although SNP members had a say on the deal, the cooperation agreement was between the Scottish Government and the Greens. At the time that the parties entered into talks, the First Minister and Scottish Ministers had been appointed and the Government formed.
The cooperation agreement set out how the Scottish Government and the Greens would work together in an operational sense, covering technical matters such as the approach to collective responsibility.
The cooperation agreement committed the Scottish Government and the Greens to delivering a shared programme. – detailed in the policy programme document Working Together To Build A Greener, Fairer, Independent Scotland.
The cooperation agreement document
The cooperation agreement document set out the overall approach to cooperation as well as detailing the operational arrangements for the Scottish Government and the Greens working together.
It detailed how the Scottish Government would consult the Greens on the legislative programme and on parliamentary business. Similarly, it set out that the Greens were to adopt a ‘no surprises’ approach to business. The Greens’ support in Parliament was to extend to votes on Bills, on amendments to Bills, on secondary legislation, and on matters of legislative consent, except where a vote related to an excluded matter (explained further below). The Greens agreed to back the Scottish Government in votes of confidence and supply.
Mechanisms to allow for shared oversight of the agreement were set out. The mechanisms were designed to “promote true cooperation”, address concerns and resolve any disputes as early as possible and included:
- regular meetings between Ministers
- an invitation to attend Cabinet meetings extended to the two Green Ministers at least twice a year
- seats for the two Green Ministers on specific Cabinet sub-committees relevant to their portfolios
- a process for dealing with concerns in a confidential manner
- in exceptional circumstances, for an item to be added to the list of exclusions.
The agreement also listed several areas where the Scottish Government and the Greens “agreed to differ”. These areas were set out in the agreement as “excluded matters”.
The Scottish Government had sole responsibility for the development of policy for excluded matters which included matters like green ports, economic development for sustainable growth and international relations.
The process set out in Section C of the Agreement allowed the Scottish Government and the Greens to explore policy areas where they had not yet reached agreement, nor had agreed to disagree.
The approach to collective responsibility (the principle set out in the Ministerial Code that all decisions reached by Scottish Ministers, individually or collectively, are binding on all members of the Government) was also stipulated. The two Green Ministers were bound by collective responsibility except in excluded matters.
Impact on Parliamentary business
Following the announcement of the agreement , the Presiding Officer wrote to members of the Scottish Parliament on 31 August 2021 giving details of how Parliamentary Business would change as a result.
This political agreement is unparalleled in Scotland and indeed the UK… The Agreement therefore requires a bespoke response here at Holyrood, one which draws on precedents and practices, is fair to all parties represented in the Parliament, and is commensurate with the requirements of robust parliamentary scrutiny.
Changes were made to the calling of Green MSPs at First Minister’s Questions and after Ministerial statements as well as to the allocation of opposition time for Green party debates and speaking slots during debates.
Green backbench MSPs retained the right to submit their names to the draws for Portfolio and General Questions, and to request Topical, Urgent and SPCB questions. The Greens also retained the party’s allocated seats on Scottish Parliament committees.
The end of the first Cooperation Agreement
On 25 April 2024 it was announced that the Scottish Government Cabinet had agreed to end the Scottish Government’s formal co-operation agreement with the Scottish Green Parliamentary Party with immediate effect.
Two key areas of policy appeared to increase the tension between the Scottish Government and the Greens – gender services and climate change.
On 18 April 2024, the Scottish Government had announced that it was to scrap its 2030 climate change target and move to a system of 5 year carbon budgeting, with targets still in place to reach net zero by 2045.
Following the two announcements, the Greens planned to ask its members in an extraordinary general meeting whether the party should continue in its power sharing agreement with the Scottish Government. Then Co-leader of the Greens, Patrick Harvie MSP, stated at the time that he would resign as co-leader if members backed an end to the Bute House agreement, believing that doing so would be a “mistake”.
On the morning of 25 April 2024, the then First Minister, Humza Yousaf MSP, held an unscheduled Cabinet meeting, announcing thereafter that. the Bute House agreement was “terminated with immediate effect”. Mr Yousaf confirmed that the Scottish Government would govern as a minority government, continuing to work with parties at the Scottish Parliament to find consensus on an issue-by-issue basis.
In his statement, the then First Minister said that the purpose of the agreement had been stability and had brought benefit as well as compromise but that “It is now my judgment that the balance has shifted”. The decision to end the power sharing agreement was a significant shift in the then First Minister’s position. Just days earlier, Mr Yousaf had said “I really value the Bute House agreement”.
The ending of the Bute House Agreement also brought to an end the tenure of the two Green Ministers.
The Coalition model
A coalition government is a government formed formally by more than one political party. Coalition governments are usually formed when no single party has a majority of the seats in parliament and two (or more) parties join forces to build a coalition and form a government together.
Once a coalition is formed, a coalition agreement is developed and published. A coalition agreement sets out how the coalition government will operate on a practical level. It is also usual for it to set out areas what the priorities of the coalition government will be. A coalition agreement is likely to be in place for a specified period of time, such as a session of parliament.
Previous coalition governments in Scotland
Since devolution in 1999, there have been two examples of coalition governments formed in Scotland.
- Scottish Parliament 1999-2003: Scottish Labour Party and the Scottish Liberal Democrats
- Scottish Parliament 2003-2007: Scottish Labour Party and the Scottish Liberal Democrats
Scottish Parliament 1999-2003: Scottish Labour Party and the Scottish Liberal Democrats
The Scottish Government was known as the Scottish Executive when it was established in 1999 following the first elections to the Scottish Parliament. The Scottish Labour Party won 56 seats in the 1999 election, nine short of an overall majority. It agreed to enter a coalition with the Scottish Liberal Democrats who had won 17 seats. The SNP, with 35 seats, formed the official opposition.
Scottish Parliament 2003-2007: Scottish Labour Party and the Scottish Liberal Democrats
The 2003 Scottish Parliament elections also resulted in a position where no single party held a majority of seats. The Scottish Labour Party, who won 50 seats again formed a coalition agreement with the Liberal Democrats, who were unchanged on 17 seats. The two parties formed the Scottish Executive. The 2003 elections returned a wide range of parties, including 3 independents, a seat for the Scottish Senior Citizens and 5 seats for the Scottish Socialists alongside the more traditional parties.
Sarah McKay, SPICe Research