- Ben Macpherson leaves government
Minister for Innovation, Technology & Tertiary Education Ben
Macpherson has tendered his resignation from the Scottish
Government for health-related reasons.
Accepting his resignation, the First Minister thanked Mr
Macpherson for his contribution to government.
Background
Changes to the ministerial team will be announced in due course.
Please find the full text of the letters from Mr Macpherson and
the First Minister below.
:: Letter from Mr Macpherson
Dear First Minister,
As discussed, I write formally to tender my resignation as a
Junior Scottish Minister. As you know, I admire and respect you
very much personally and as First Minister. I also appreciate and
acknowledge the sacrifices you make to serve as First Minister. I
have, however, reflected very deeply in recent months about my
position and priorities in my life, and feel I need more time to
be able to attend to other important pressures, people and
purposes, including my mental and physical well-being. Without
the constraints and demands of a Ministerial role, I also want to
have more time and scope to serve my constituency of Edinburgh
North Eastern and Leith, and to pursue various political passions
outwith government. Therefore, I have come to the very difficult
decision that holding Ministerial office is not right for me at
this time, and I wish to pass it on. I will do all that I can to
support a handover to my successor.
I was very proud re-join the government in September 2025, and to
serve you and Scotland again, using my experience to pick up the
role quickly and get meaningful things done. I have worked hard
and carried the responsibility carefully, to make a real impact
and achieve positive progress. Thank you for this remarkable
honour.
There is much still to progress and complete but the portfolio is
in a stronger place, with the necessary strategic workstreams up
and running, and actions in process. Stakeholder / key partner
relationships are positive, working with us on shared aims. A
collegiate spirit and approach has been created to confronting
shared challenges.
I want to express my gratitude for all the support I have
received in the last year from my private secretaries and all the
Scottish Government officials I have worked with. We have done
good work together and I am proud of the difference we have made
Moreover, it has been a pleasure to work collaboratively with all
stakeholders, including the Scottish Funding Council (SFC),
Skills Development Scotland (SDS), Universities Scotland (and all
universities), Colleges Scotland (and all colleges), the Scottish
Training Federation (and their members), the Careers
Collaborative, Developing the Young Workforce (DYW), the business
community and our enterprise agencies, YouthLink Scotland and
Youth Scotland, and many others too.
My apologies to you and all involved for the inconvenience of
this resignation, and thank you for kindly understanding my
reasoning. Again, this has been a very difficult decision for me,
and I reiterate strongly my support for both you and the
government.
With my very best wishes and much gratitude,
Ben Macpherson
:: Letter from the First Minister
Dear Ben
Thank you for your letter. I appreciate that this will not have
been an easy decision and that you have reflected carefully
before you have reached your conclusion.
You have made a significant contribution in government not least
as Minister for Innovation, Technology and Tertiary Education
where the Education and Training (Funding and Governance)
(Scotland) Act 2026 was passed under your leadership. I know you
have been closely involved in work to co-design and co-deliver
the future of Scotland's college and university sectors work that
has cross-party support. And, I know that during your time in
post you gave a fresh impetus to our support for youth work and
made great strides in improving our apprenticeship system and
strategic skills planning, in close cooperation with the business
community.
In previous ministerial roles, during your time in social
security, you were closely involved with the expansion of the
Scottish Child Payment and launching the Adult Disability
payment. And, your work in international development remains
relevant to the programme we take forward in this area to this
day.
These are but a few examples of your contribution from your time
in a wide range of portfolios - including finance, external
affairs, rural affairs and climate, as well as in education most
recently.
I know the diligence in which you serve the people of Edinburgh
North Eastern and Leith as an SNP MSP, and I look forward to you
continuing to do so in the SNP parliamentary group.
I hope that the time away from government you are now taking can
lead you a stronger, more resilient place. You have my very best
wishes in doing so.
Yours, for Scotland,
JOHN SWINNEY
