Chamber and committees

The following table shows Human Trafficking (HT) charges or any charge with a HT aggravation reported to Procurator Fiscal Office, Aberdeen for the period 1 April 2020-31 March 2024 subsequently marked for court proceedings (prosecuted).

COPFS employs 2501 staff comprised of 733 legal staff and 1768 support and administrative staff. As referred to in the answer for S6W-32302 on 9 January 2025 based within the Aberdeen Procurator Fiscal’s Office, there are 37 legal members of staff. In Addition, there are 84 members of support/administration staff. These figures are correct as at 30 November 2024.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

The following table shows charges reported to Procurator Fiscal Office, Aberdeen for the period 1 April 2019-31 March 2024 subsequently marked for court proceedings (prosecuted) – in cases where the accused is recorded as a company. The table shows the position as at 17 December 2024. It should be noted that a number of charges which have been reported may still be awaiting a marking decision.

Allocation of COPFS resources is considered on a national basis to ensure delivery of its priorities: to improve the experiences of women and children within the justice system; to improve communication with its customers and partners and the support offered to the most vulnerable service users; and to achieve quicker conclusions to criminal and death investigations.

The following table shows cases reported to the Aberdeen Procurator Fiscal’s Office which include at least one charge under the Scottish Government classification of "Fraud" for the period 1 April 2021-31 March 2024

The following table details the number of criminal cases marked no further action - now insufficient admissible evidence in the financial year 2023-24. The count is by case.

COPFS employs both legal and non-legal members of staff. As at 30 November 2024, COPFS employed 37 members of legal staff who are based at the Procurator Fiscal’s Office Aberdeen.

In 2024, the Scottish Government commissioned the Improvement Service with support from Assist FM, to map breakfast provision across Scotland. The results of this survey indicate that almost half of all primary and special schools in Scotland currently provide breakfasts in some form.

Existing breakfast club provision is delivered through a mixed model of delivery via a range of service providers including public, private and third sector. Therefore, we do not hold a data set or register of breakfast club delivery at individual local authority level, although this data may be available locally.

This is a matter for the Scottish Charity Regulator. It is a non-ministerial office and its operations are independent of Scottish Ministers. The information requested is not held centrally and questions about any operational matters should be put directly to the Scottish Charity Regulator.

Legislation surrounding the use of e-bikes is a reserved matter for the UK Government. For an e-bike to be legal for use in the UK, they must meet the criteria of an electrically assisted pedal cycle and the electric motor should not be able to propel the bike when it’s travelling more than 15.5mph, with a maximum power output of 250 watts. This ensures speeds similar to that of other bicycles.

From January 2024 and the end of September 2024 Police Scotland made 281 seizures of illegal ebikes. In December Police Scotland published advice on ebikes ahead of Christmas that provides clarity on the standards required to be permitted to ride on public roads.

It is every road and path users responsibility to respect others and the Highway Code outlines both rules and guidance for everyone.