Co-leadership election bid Changes to the
Scottish Greens' constitution meant the positions of co-conveners were abolished in favour of the newly established positions of co-leaders. In the run up to the
2019 Scottish Greens co-leadership election, Slater announced her candidacy via
Twitter. When announcing her candidacy, she stated that the party was ready for a "fresh new start." Upon winning, she said that she wanted to get more
women and
non-binary people elected, and to gain more seats than ever before at the
2021 Scottish Parliament election. In the
2021 election to the
6th Scottish Parliament, the
Scottish Greens saw their best result ever. The party gained 8.1% of votes on the regional list, earning two additional seats. As the
Scottish National Party was one seat away from a majority, the Greens' gain in the election created a pro-independence majority. Slater predicted the Greens "will have more influence than ever".
Member of the Scottish Parliament; 2021 to present Slater stood as the Greens' candidate for the
Edinburgh Northern and Leith constituency in the
2021 Scottish Parliament election. She gained 13.1% of the votes, but failed to win the seat, coming third. Although Slater was unsuccessful in winning the constituency, she was second on the party list vote for the
Lothian region, and was elected as an
additional member. Slater was a member of the Scottish Parliament's
Economy and Fair Work Committee as well as the Scottish Greens' Spokesperson on Economic Recovery and Green Industrial Strategy.
COVID-19 rules breach On 10 June 2021, a picture was shared on social media which showed Slater and other members of the Greens, including co-leader
Patrick Harvie and MSP for
West Scotland Ross Greer, breaching
social distancing measures. At the time only three households were allowed meet indoors. However,
The Scottish Sun reported that Slater, Harvie, Greer and another Green Party member were pictured at a bar in Edinburgh. Slater responded, "This was an honest mistake, we're kicking ourselves and we apologise unreservedly". ;
Nicola Sturgeon and Slater outside Bute House following the SNP-Greens co-operation agreement, 2021|left
Bute House Agreement In August 2021 after weeks of talks, she was at Bute House with co-leader
Patrick Harvie and First Minister Nicola Sturgeon to announce a
power-sharing agreement that would see the Green party in government for the first time in the United Kingdom. There was no agreement on oil and gas exploration. As part of the agreement the Green Party would have two ministers in government.
Junior minister; 2021 – 2024 On 30 August 2021, Slater was appointed as a junior minister in the Scottish Government as
Minister for Green Skills, Circular Economy and Biodiversity. She and Harvie are the first Green Party politicians in both Scottish and UK political history to serve in government. She was re-appointed as a minister after Green MSPs supported the nomination of
Humza Yousaf as First Minister. Slater joined First Minister Humza Yousaf and
Minister for Independence Jamie Hepburn to launch the Scottish government's proposal for how citizenship would work in an independent Scotland in July 2023. , December 2023 In December 2023, she joined the Traveling Cabinet in
Haddington, East Lothian. She then took part in a question and answer session with local residents with the Scottish Cabinet. It has been reported she attended that Cabinet meeting and other emergency Cabinet meetings as part of efforts to finalize the Scottish budget and get agreement between the Greens and SNP.
Deposit return scheme In November 2021 Slater announced that a flagship recycling scheme for drinks containers had been delayed yet again. Although prior to her election Slater had told voters the scheme "needs doing", in government she said it was proving too tricky. Greenpeace said such, "a shambolic delay to the long awaited deposit return scheme is embarrassing for a government which loves to shout about its green credentials." meeting business stakeholders in Scotland's Deposit Return Scheme, April 2023|left On 18 April 2023, the First Minister,
Humza Yousaf announced the scheme would be delayed until March 2024, while the
Scottish Government awaited an exemption for the scheme from the
United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020. Subsequently, after the
UK Government decision to provide a partial exemption from the Act, Slater announced that the scheme would be delayed "until October 2025 at the earliest" and said that the UK Government "sadly seemed so far more intent on sabotaging this parliament than protecting our environment." Circularity Scotland, the body set up to deliver the scheme said it was "disappointed" by Slater's decision. After delaying the scheme, she was subject to a
vote of no confidence in Parliament, with the Conservatives accusing Slater of being "out of her depth". During the No Confidence debate, Humza Yousaf described the motion as a 'stunt' to distract from the report on
Boris Johnson, a perspective shared by Slater herself, who had earlier called the motion "a shameless political stunt." The motion was defeated by 68 votes to 55 resulting in Slater surviving the vote and remaining as a junior minister. Part of it, the biodiversity strategy had previously been delayed to allow for further development, which led to criticism from the
Scottish Conservatives It proposes to halt the decline of biodiversity and create a “nature-positive” Scotland by 2030. Marine conversation campaigners had criticised the strategy as a "paper exercise in delay". Slater disagreed, calling the criticism a "disappointing portrayal …[that] we neither recognise nor accept." In October 2023, Slater reaffirmed the promise to create at least two new national parks.
Circular economy The
Circular Economy Bill was introduced to the Scottish Parliament by Slater in June 2023. Slater argues the bill targets “lazy, anti-social behaviour” and the country's growing “throw away culture” by introducing further regulation on waste disposal. Slater's proposals were welcomed by
Friends of the Earth Scotland. The Bill is currently undergoing stage one scrutiny by the
Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee who criticised the "entirely unrealistic" costings that accompany the bill. Slater was criticised for avoiding questions from MSPs about the Bill by some commentators. Some campaigners had advocated for the Slater to go further, and include provision for education about the circular economy. == Personal life ==