Kate Forbes

Kate Forbes
MSP
Official portrait, 2024
Deputy First Minister of Scotland
Incumbent
Assumed office
8 May 2024
First MinisterJohn Swinney
Preceded byShona Robison
Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Gaelic
Incumbent
Assumed office
9 May 2024
First MinisterJohn Swinney
Preceded byMàiri McAllan (Economy)
Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy[a]
In office
17 February 2020 – 28 March 2023[b]
First MinisterNicola Sturgeon
Preceded byDerek Mackay
Succeeded byShona Robison (Finance)
Neil Gray (Wellbeing Economy, Fair Work and Energy)
Minister for Public Finance and Digital Economy
In office
27 June 2018 – 17 February 2020
First MinisterNicola Sturgeon
Preceded byOffice established
Succeeded byBen Macpherson
Member of the Scottish Parliament
for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch
Incumbent
Assumed office
5 May 2016
Preceded byDave Thompson
Majority15,861 (36.8%)
Personal details
Born
Kate Elizabeth Forbes

(1990-04-06) 6 April 1990 (age 34)
Dingwall, Scotland
Political partyScottish National Party (SNP)
Spouse
Alasdair MacLennan
​
​
(m. 2021)​
Children1
Alma materSelwyn College, Cambridge (BA)
University of Edinburgh (MSc)
Signature
Websitewww.parliament.scot/msps/current-and-previous-msps/kate-forbes

Kate Elizabeth Forbes (born 6 April 1990) is a Scottish politician who has served as Deputy First Minister of Scotland and Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Gaelic since May 2024.[1] A member of the Scottish National Party (SNP), she previously served as Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy from 2020 to 2023.[a][b] Forbes has been Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch since 2016.

Born in Dingwall, Scotland, in 1990, Forbes was raised in India and Scotland and was educated at a Scottish Gaelic-medium school, where she became fluent in the language. She earned a BA degree in history at Selwyn College, Cambridge, and then an MSc in diaspora and migration history from the University of Edinburgh. After completing her degree, Forbes worked for a short time in the Scottish Parliament as a researcher for SNP MSP Dave Thompson. Forbes was elected as an MSP in the 2016 Scottish Parliament election and quickly rose within the SNP. Nicola Sturgeon appointed Forbes as the Minister for Public Finance and Digital Economy, serving as the deputy to the Scottish Finance Secretary, Derek Mackay. After Mackay resigned, Forbes was appointed Finance Secretary by Sturgeon. Her tenure was dominated by the COVID-19 pandemic in Scotland, and its economic impact, and the cost of living crisis in the UK.

On announcement of Sturgeon's intention to resign as Leader of the SNP and First Minister of Scotland, Forbes announced her candidacy for leader in the 2023 leadership election. This leadership bid drew significant attention due to her membership of the Free Church of Scotland, an evangelical Calvinist denomination with socially conservative positions,[2][3][4] and her religious views on sexual ethics, including disavowal of sexual intercourse before marriage, rejection of same-sex marriage, and opposition to most forms of abortion.[5][6][7] She lost the election to Humza Yousaf, taking 47.9% of the vote to his 52.1% in the final ballot. She subsequently left government to sit as a backbencher.

Following Yousaf's resignation in April 2024, Forbes was touted as a potential candidate to succeed him in the 2024 SNP leadership election but she ultimately chose not to stand and endorsed John Swinney. After Swinney became First Minister in May 2024, he appointed Forbes as Deputy First Minister of Scotland and Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Gaelic in his government.


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  1. ^ "Cabinet and Ministers - gov.scot". www.gov.scot. Retrieved 8 May 2024.
  2. ^ Andrews, Kieran (24 February 2023). "Kate Forbes admits faith views may sink campaign as poll offers hope". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved 24 February 2023.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference :7 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference :8 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ Learmouth, Andrew (21 February 2023). "Kate Forbes faces SNP probe over claims she breached party rules on transphobia". Herald Scotland. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  6. ^ McDonald, Andrew (22 February 2023). "Kate Forbes: 48 hours that shot down the SNP's brightest star". Politico Europe. Retrieved 22 February 2023.
  7. ^ Deerin, Chris (21 February 2023). "Is Kate Forbes's SNP leadership campaign over already?". New Statesman. Retrieved 22 February 2023.