Douglas Alexander will continue as Secretary of State for Scotland after being reappointed by Prime Minister Andy Burnham, with the decision prompting an immediate political response from the SNP.

The reappointment means Mr Alexander will remain the UK Government’s senior representative for Scottish affairs as the new administration begins setting out its priorities.

Responding to the announcement, the SNP renewed its criticism of the Scottish Secretary and repeated its call for Westminster to allow another referendum on Scottish independence.

SNP MSP David Linden said:

“Douglas Alexander masterminded the Labour Party’s worst ever defeat in Scotland, sat silent as thousands of oil and gas jobs were lost in Scotland and was shamed over disgraceful message exchanges with Peter Mandelson, he pulled the wool over Starmer’s eyes and it seems he’s repeated the trick with Burnham.

“Scotland doesn’t need this servant of Westminster having any say over our future, if Andy Burnham is serious about where power lies on these islands then his first instruction to Douglas Alexander should be to respect the democratic will of the Scottish Parliament and give the Scottish people the right to decide our constitutional future.

“Westminster has failed Scotland and no one is more part of that London based Westminster establishment than Douglas Alexander through a fresh start with independence, we can build a wealthier Scotland anew, free of broken, Brexit Britain.”

The reappointment comes as constitutional issues have quickly emerged as one of the first areas of disagreement between the new UK Government and the Scottish Government, with ministers continuing to hold differing positions on whether Scotland should be granted a further independence referendum.

Douglas Alexander’s return to the role ensures continuity at the Scotland Office as the UK Government begins work on its programme for the new Parliament, while opposition parties continue to challenge its approach to Scotland’s constitutional future.