5th Scottish Parliament facts for kids

Quick facts for kids 5th Scottish Parliament
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Members elected to the Scottish Parliament on 5 May 2016
Overview
Legislative body	Scottish Parliament
Jurisdiction	Scotland
Meeting place	Scottish Parliament Building
Term	12 May 2016 – 5 May 2021
Election	2016
Government	Second Sturgeon government
Members	129
Presiding Officer	Rt Hon Ken Macintosh
First Minister	Nicola Sturgeon
Deputy First Minister	John Swinney
Leader of the Opposition	Ruth Davidson (2016–18) Jackson Carlaw (2018–19) Ruth Davidson (2019) Jackson Carlaw (2019–20) Ruth Davidson (2020–21)

The Scottish Parliament is where important decisions for Scotland are made. This article is about the fifth group of people, called Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs), who worked there. They were elected in the 2016 election. There are 129 MSPs in total. Some MSPs are chosen directly by voters in their local areas, called constituencies. Others are chosen from larger regions to make sure all votes count fairly.

The Parliament started its work on 12 May 2016. On this day, the MSPs took their promises and chose a special leader called the Presiding Officer. Queen Elizabeth II officially opened this new session of Parliament on 2 July 2016.

The Queen speaking at the opening ceremony of the 5th Scottish Parliament.

How the Parliament Was Made Up

This section shows which political parties had how many MSPs when the Parliament started in May 2016 and when it finished in May 2021.

The parties that were part of the government are marked with a small dot (•).

Visualizing Party Strengths

These pictures show how the different parties were represented in the Scottish Parliament. The first picture is right after the 2016 election. The second picture shows how things looked when the Parliament ended in 2021.

A visual of the Scottish Parliament's party strength in 2016.

A visual of the Scottish Parliament's party strength in 2021.

• Please note: These pictures do not show the actual seating plan of the Scottish Parliament.

Changes in Parliament Members

During the five years of the 5th Scottish Parliament, some MSPs changed their roles or left their positions. This section explains some of those changes.

• May 2016: Ken Macintosh was chosen as the Presiding Officer. When an MSP becomes Presiding Officer, they stop being part of their political party. This helps them be fair to everyone.
• December 2016: Alex Johnstone sadly passed away. Another MSP from the same party, Bill Bowman, took his place.
• May 2017: John Lamont left his seat to try and become a member of the UK Parliament. A special election was held, and Rachael Hamilton won his seat.
• May 2017: Because Rachael Hamilton won a constituency seat, she left her regional seat. Michelle Ballantyne then took her place.
• June 2017: Douglas Ross and Ross Thomson both left their seats in the Scottish Parliament because they were elected to the UK Parliament. Jamie Halcro Johnston and Tom Mason took their places.
• November 2017: Alex Rowley (Labour) and Mark McDonald (SNP) became independent MSPs for a period due to internal party matters.
• December 2017: Alex Rowley rejoined the Labour Party.
• July 2019: Kezia Dugdale left her seat to take on a new job. Sarah Boyack then became an MSP.
• August 2019: Tavish Scott left his seat for a new role. A special election was held, and Beatrice Wishart won the seat.
• February 2020: Derek Mackay became an independent MSP due to personal reasons.
• November 2020: Michelle Ballantyne left the Conservative Party because she disagreed with some of their policies. She became an independent MSP.
• December 2020: Andy Wightman left the Scottish Green Party due to disagreements on certain policies and became an independent MSP.
• January 2021: Michelle Ballantyne joined a new political party called Reform UK and became its leader in Scotland.