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Scottish Parliament

Background Color#330066
Text Colorwhite
NameScottish Parliament
Native NamePàrlamaid na h-Alba
Legislature4th Parliament
Structure1Scottish Parliament 2011.svg
Coa PicScottish Parliament logo1.png
Coa Res50px
House TypeUnicameral
Leader1 TypePresiding Officer
Leader1Tricia Marwick MSP
Party1SNP
Election111 May 2011
Leader2 TypeCabinet Secretary for
Parliamentary Business
and Government Strategy
Leader2Bruce Crawford MSP
Party2SNP
Election219 May 2011
Members129
Structure1 Res300 px
Political Groups1  SNP (68)
  Lab (37)
  Con (15)
  Lib Dem (5)
  Green (2)
  Ind (1)
{{colorbox| }} PO (1)
Committees116
title=16
Audit
Equal Opportunities
Europe and External Relations
Finance
Procedures
Public Petitions
Standards and Public Appointments
Subordinate Legislation
Economy, Energy and Tourism
Education, Lifelong Learning and Culture
Health and Sport
Justice
Local Government and Communities
Rural Affairs and Environment
Scottish Parliamentary Pensions Scheme
Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change
Voting System1Additional Members System
Last Election15 May 2011
Next Election15 May 2016
Session RoomParliament debating chamber 2.jpg
Session Res250px
Meeting PlaceScottish Parliament Building, Holyrood, Edinburgh

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The Scottish Parliament ( ; Scots: The Scots Pairliament) is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood", is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs). Members are elected for four-year terms under the mixed member proportional representation system. As a result, 73 MSPs represent individual geographical constituencies elected by the plurality ("first past the post") system, with a further 56 returned from eight additional member regions, each electing seven MSPs. The most recent general election to the Parliament was held on 5 May 2011.

The original Parliament of Scotland (or "Estates of Scotland") was the national legislature of the independent Kingdom of Scotland, and existed from the early 13th century until the Kingdom of Scotland merged with the Kingdom of England under the Acts of Union 1707 to form the Kingdom of Great Britain. As a consequence, the Parliament of Scotland merged with the Parliament of England to form the Parliament of Great Britain, which sat at Westminster in London.

Following a referendum in 1997, in which the Scottish electorate gave their consent, the current Parliament was established by the Scotland Act 1998, which sets out its powers as a devolved legislature. The Act delineates the legislative competence of the Parliament - the areas in which it can make laws - by explicitly specifying powers that are "reserved" to the Parliament of the United Kingdom: all matters that are not explicitly reserved are automatically the responsibility of the Scottish Parliament. The British Parliament retains the ability to amend the terms of reference of the Scottish Parliament, and can extend or reduce the areas in which it can make laws. The first meeting of the new Parliament took place on 12 May 1999.


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