Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament

Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament
Scottish Gaelic: Oifigear Riaghlaidh Pàrlamaid na h-Alba Scots: Preses o the Scots Pairlament
Logo used to represent the Scottish Parliament
Incumbent Alison Johnstone since 13 May 2021
Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body Scottish Parliament
Style	Presiding Officer (within Parliament) The Right Honourable (formal)
Member of	Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body Scottish Parliament Privy Council
Seat	Queensberry House, Edinburgh
Nominator	Scottish Parliament (through secret exhaustive ballot voting)
Appointer	Scottish Parliament (elected by)
Term length	Elected by the Scottish Parliament at the start of each session, and upon a vacancy
Inaugural holder	David Steel
Formation	1999
Deputy	Annabelle Ewing and Liam McArthur[1]
Salary	£118,511 per annum (2023)[2] (including £67,662 MSP salary)
Website	Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament

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The presiding officer of the Scottish Parliament (Scottish Gaelic: Oifigear-Riaghlaidh, Scots: Preses^[3]) is the presiding officer and speaker of the Scottish Parliament. The office of presiding officer was established by the Scotland Act 1998, and the elected presiding officer is a member of the Scottish Parliament who is elected by the Scottish Parliament by means of an exhaustive ballot, and is ex officio the head of the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The presiding officer is considered a figurehead of the Scottish Parliament and has an office in Queensberry House.

Appointments to the Privy Council are made by the monarch, although in practice they are made only on the advice of the UK government. To date all presiding officers have been appointed members of the Privy Council, and therefore entitled to use the style 'Right Honourable'.

The current presiding officer is Alison Johnstone, who was elected on 13 May 2021, following the 2021 Scottish Parliament election. A member of the Scottish Greens, she was sworn in as presiding officer at the opening of the 6th session of the Scottish Parliament and is the second woman to hold the office and the first former member of the Scottish Greens to do so.