The justice secretary has survived a no-confidence vote amid a row over holding a Scottish grooming gangs inquiry.
Angela Constance received 67 votes in favour of keeping her in post, with 57 voting in favour of ousting the SNP MSP.
There was one abstention.
The justice secretary had been accused of “misrepresenting” the views of a leading child abuse expert while rejecting calls for an inquiry into grooming gangs in September.
Two separate motions of “no confidence” were lodged against Constance over the row last week, and it was put to a vote at Holyrood on Tuesday.
Labour, the Tories and the Liberal Democrats voted against her, while Green and SNP MSPs backed Constance as justice secretary.
Immediately after a motion of no confidence in Constance was defeated, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar wrote to the three independent advisers on the Scottish Government’s ministerial code.
Sarwar told them he was “concerned that Angela Constance has misled Parliament on perhaps one of the most serious issues in her brief”.
Constance was fighting for her job amid claims she “brazenly misrepresented” Professor Alexis Jay, who led the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Exploitation in Rotherham in 2014, on the issue of grooming gangs in Scotland.
When Constance rejected calls for an inquiry into grooming gangs in September, she told MSPs Prof Jay agreed with her that such a probe was not needed.
Emails made public by the Scottish Government on Wednesday revealed Prof Jay later contacted the justice secretary to say she would “appreciate” her position “being clarified”.
After the issue was raised, John Swinney insisted he had full confidence in his justice secretary.
He added that Constance had been “making a general comment” on the situation when she made the remarks.
Deputy first minister Kate Forbes said she believed Prof Jay was “content” with the process of comments made by Constance being clarified.
However, Sarwar said that Constance had misled Parliament “on perhaps one of the most serious issues in her brief” and had then “repeatedly refused to correct the record”.
Constance has FM’s ‘full confidence’
During the debate, the First Minister insisted Constance is a “sincere” minister who would “never address Parliament in a way that would mislead [MSPs]”.
Over the past two years, Swinney said she has “openly and with candour” shared with Parliament the challenges of Scotland’s rising prison population.
In the last 18 months, he added that Constance has “steered four crucial acts” through Parliament – including the Victims, Witnesses and Justice Reform bill.
“For these reasons, Angela Constance has my full confidence as justice secretary,” Swinney said.
However, Sarwar and Tory leader Russell Findlay said victims and survivors of grooming gangs have “lost confidence” in the justice secretary. For this reason, they said she must be ousted.
“This has now stopped being an error and become a matter of honesty and transparency,” Sarwar said.
“She cannot continue in this role”.
Findlay said: “This is about the fundamental importance of honesty and integrity in government and in Parliament.
“Angela Constance’s conduct is inexcusable, and her position is no longer tenable.”
Speaking for the Scottish Liberal Democrats, MSP Jamie Greene said his party saw the vote as “regrettable as it was avoidable”.
Greene emphasised that while the Lib Dems hold “personal goodwill” towards Constance, they believe the vote was an “inevitable result of a series of events which could have been avoided and resolved.”
On the other side, Scottish Greens co-leader Ross Greer accused opposition parties of “using the issue for political advantage”.
“I am profoundly sad we’ve got to this point,” Greer said.
“The Scottish Government can and should have handled this better – far better – but I doubt that would have dissuaded those who have used this issue for political advantage.”
Greer added: “This afternoon is about politics, and I have no time for that, which is why the Greens will vote against the motion.”
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