Scotland Office
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Royal Arms in Scotland, as used by HMG
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| Department overview | |
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| Formed | 2003 |
| Preceding Department | |
| Jurisdiction | Scotland |
| Headquarters | 1 Melville Crescent, Edinburgh, EH3 7HW (in Scotland); Dover House, Whitehall, London, SW1A 2AU (in Westminster) |
| Annual budget | £8 million for 2011–12 |
| Minister responsible | |
| Website | Scotland Office |
The Scotland Office (Scottish Gaelic: An Oifis Albannach) is a UK Government Department headed by the Secretary of State for Scotland and responsible for Scottish affairs. Its role combines with that of the Ministry of Justice in HM Government.
The office is responsible for the representation of Scotland and Scottish affairs in HM Government, facilitating the smooth operation of devolution, liaising between the UK Government and the Scottish Government at Edinburgh and the administering of certain reserved matters of government relating to Scotland.
Until the advent of the Scottish Parliament and the devolved Scottish Government, the precursor to the Scottish Office was a major UK Government Department dealing with most aspects of the domestic governance of Scotland, a position known as "administrative devolution". Since devolution its powers are limited to those relating to reserved matters that are not dealt with by other departments of HM Government and it, along with the Wales Office, was then absorbed into the Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA), which in turn became the Ministry of Justice. The Secretary of State for Scotland also holds certain powers of oversight over the operation of the Scottish Parliament under the Scotland Act 1998.
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