The Scottish Government Rural Affairs, Environment and Services Directorates were a group of

civil service The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...

Directorates in the Scottish Government until a December 2010 re-organisation. The Environment Directorates reported to the Director-General, Paul Gray. A general

concordat A concordat is a convention between the Holy See and a sovereign state that defines the relationship between the Catholic Church and the state in matters that concern both,René Metz, ''What is Canon Law?'' (New York: Hawthorn Books, 1960 st Edi ...

, drawn up in 1999, set out agreed frameworks for co-operation between the Environment Directorates and the

United Kingdom government ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_est ...

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and there is another specifically on the subject of genetically modified organisms. After December 2010 many of the department's responsibilities became those of the Enterprise, Environment and Digital Directorates. This changed again to the Enterprise, Environment and Innovation Directorates after a June 2014 rebranding.

Ministers

The political responsibilities of the Directorates were those of the

Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment , insignia = , image = Official portrait of rural affairs secretary Mairi Gourgeon.jpg , incumbent = Mairi Gougeon , incumbentsince = 20 May 2021 , style = Cabinet Secretary (within parliament) Rural Affairs Secretary (informal) Scottish ...

, Richard Lochhead MSP, whose responsibilities include: agriculture, fisheries and rural development including aquaculture and forestry, environment and natural heritage, land reform, water quality regulation and sustainable development. He was supported by the

Minister for Environment An environment minister (sometimes minister of the environment or secretary of the environment) is a cabinet position charged with protecting the natural environment and promoting wildlife conservation. The areas associated with the duties of an ...

Roseanna Cunningham Roseanna Cunningham (born 27 July 1951) is a retired Scottish National Party (SNP) politician who served as Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform from 2016 to 2021. She was previously Cabinet Secretary for Fair Work ...

MSP.

Directorates

The overarching Scottish Government Directorates, including the Environment Directorates were preceded by similar structures called "Departments" that no longer exist (although the word is still sometimes used in this context). As an overarching set of Directorates, the Environment Directorates incorporate a number of individual Directorates entitled: * Rural (including Agriculture & Rural Development, Animal Health & Welfare, Landscapes & Habitats, Rural Communities, Food Industry Unit, Special Project Leader for Agriculture & Climate Change and Veterinary). * Marine Scotland (including Aquaculture, Freshwater Fisheries & Licensing Policy, Performance, Science, Planning & Policy, Compliance and Sea Fisheries Policy). * Rural and Environment Research and Analysis (including Rural & Environment Analytical Services and Research & Science). * Rural Payments & Inspections (including IT & Business Support, Common Agricultural Policy Payments, Agricultural Services, Science & Advice for Scottish Agriculture and Regional Delivery). * Environmental Quality (including Waste & Pollution Reduction, Drinking Water Quality and Water, Air, Soils & Flooding). * Greener Scotland.Scottish Government Senior Management Structure
(pdf) Scottish Government. Retrieved 28 July 2009.

Agencies and other bodies

The Directorates are responsible for one agency: *

Forestry Commission Scotland Forestry Commission Scotland was the division of the UK Forestry Commission responsible for forestry in Scotland until 2019, when it was dissolved. *Forestry Commission was the body responsible for forestry in Scotland prior to 2019, and continues ...

The Directorates also sponsor several

non-departmental public bodies In the United Kingdom, non-departmental public body (NDPB) is a classification applied by the Cabinet Office, Treasury A treasury is either *A government department related to finance and taxation, a finance ministry. *A place or location ...

including: *

Cairngorms National Park Authority Cairngorms National Park ( gd, Pàirc Nàiseanta a' Mhonaidh Ruaidh) is a national park in northeast Scotland, established in 2003. It was the second of two national parks established by the Scottish Parliament, after Loch Lomond and The Tross ...

Crofters Commission The Crofting Commission ( gd, Coimisean na Croitearachd) took the place of the Crofters Commission ( gd, Coimisean nan Croitearan) on 1 April 2012 as the statutory regulator for crofting in Scotland. Based in Inverness, it is an executive non- ...

Deer Commission for Scotland The Deer Commission for Scotland was an executive non-departmental body of the Scottish Government. It was responsible for the conservation, control and sustainable management of all species of wild deer in Scotland. It also acted as the Gover ...

* Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park Authority *

Macaulay Institute The Macaulay Institute, formally the Macaulay Land Use Research Institute and sometimes referred to simply as The Macaulay, is a research institute based at Aberdeen in Scotland, which is now part of the James Hutton Institute. Its work cov ...

Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh (RBGE) is a scientific centre for the study of plants, their diversity and conservation, as well as a popular tourist attraction. Founded in 1670 as a physic garden to grow medicinal plants, today it occupies ...

Scottish Environment Protection Agency The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA; gd, Buidheann Dìon Àrainneachd na h-Alba) is Scotland's environmental regulator and national flood forecasting, flood warning and strategic flood risk management authority.Scottish Natural Heritage NatureScot ( gd, NàdarAlba), which was formerly known as Scottish Natural Heritage, is an Scottish public bodies#Executive NDPBs, executive non-departmental public body of the Scottish Government responsible for the country's natural heritage, ...

The

Rural Development Council The Rural Development Council was an advisory body to the Scottish Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment, Richard Lochhead MSP. Its members include: Barbara Kelly; Donald MacRae of the Bank of Scotland; Stuart Housden, the Direc ...

was set up in 2008 to advise the Cabinet Secretary on rural affairs and to "consider how best rural Scotland can contribute to the creation of a more successful country, through increasing sustainable economic growth"."Scotland Rural Development Council"
Scottish Government. Retrieved 27 July 2009.

History

Prior to the Environment Directorates' creation in 2007, many of their responsibilities were undertaken by the

Scottish Executive Environment and Rural Affairs Department The Scottish Executive Environment and Rural Affairs Department (SEERAD) was a civil service department of the Scottish Executive. SEERAD was responsible for the following areas in Scotland: agriculture, rural development, food, the environment a ...

(SEERAD).

References

External links

Scottish Government Senior Management Structure
(pdf) {{Scottish Government Directorates Defunct departments of the Scottish Government Economy of Scotland Climate change in Scotland Scottish coast and countryside Science and technology in Scotland Environment of Scotland 2010 disestablishments in Scotland Environmental organisations based in Scotland