SPICe Spotlight | Solas air SPICe
Reading Time: 7 minutesSince 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.
Reading Time: 3 minutesThis blog explains how a Scottish Government is formed following a general election to the Scottish Parliament.
Reading Time: 3 minutesThis blog explains how the Parliament nominates a candidate for First Minister.
Reading Time: 7 minutesAfter MSPs are sworn in, the first job of the new Parliament is to elect a Presiding Officer and two Deputy Presiding Officers. This is
Reading Time: 5 minutesThe first order of business for the new Parliament is the swearing in of members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs) returned at the general election
Reading Time: 2 minutesFollowing the general election to the Scottish Parliament on 7 May 2026, the Parliament is due to meet for the first time on Thursday 14th May as detailed in the Business Bulletin on Tuesday 24 March 2026.
As the Session 7 Parliament gets underway, SPICe will publish a series of blogs to explain what will happen in the first few meetings of the Parliament. This mini blogpost provides a central hub for this work to assist Members and others.
Reading Time: 7 minutesThis blog sets out the election results for the 2026 Scottish Parliament and what they mean for the make-up of the Session 7 Parliament.
Reading Time: 6 minutesThis blog sets out what is changing with the National Performance Framework, why the reform matters, and what happens next as the Scottish Government prepares its final proposals for the next administration.
Reading Time: < 1 minuteThe Scottish Parliament election is due to be held on Thursday 7 May 2026. The formal election timetable starts with the dissolution of The Scottish Parliament. The current five-year session of
Reading Time: 2 minutesTha dùil gun tèid taghadh Pàrlamaid na h-Alba a chumail air Diardaoin 7 Cèitean 2026. Bidh clàr-ama foirmeil an taghaidh a’ tòiseachadh le sgaoileadh Pàrlamaid na