In relation to concluded Fatal Accident Inquiries where the Determination was published in 2024-25, 74% featured public bodies as interested parties. The public bodies were as follows: Scottish Prison Service (53% of all FAIs), NHS boards (50%), Prison Officers’ Association of Scotland (17%), Police Service of Scotland (6%), Scottish Ambulance Service (4%), Health and Safety Executive, Scottish Fire & Rescue Service, The British Army and the Office of the Advocate General for Scotland (all 2%).

In relation to concluded Fatal Accident Inquiries where the Determination was published in 2023-24, 80% featured public bodies as interested parties. The public bodies were as follows: NHS boards (51% of all FAIs), Scottish Prison Service (46%), Prison Officers’ Association of Scotland (20%), Police Service of Scotland (9%), Scottish Ambulance Service, Health and Safety Executive and Home Office (all 3%).

In relation to concluded Fatal Accident Inquiries where the Determination was published in 2022-23, 62% featured public bodies as interested parties. The public bodies were as follows: NHS boards (50% of all FAIs), Scottish Prison Service (45%), Prison Officers’ Association of Scotland (24%), Police Service of Scotland, Health and Safety Executive, Scottish Fire & Rescue Service, Glasgow City Council, Maritime & Coastguard Agency, Orkney Islands Council and the Attorney General of the Republic of Cyprus (all 2%).

Where a child or young person requires a co-ordinated support plan, education authorities have a legal duty to have arrangements in place to identify this need.

As part of our work through the ASL Action Plan, we are developing national professional learning resources and accessible information and guidance on CSPs for children, young people, parents and carers. We are committed to including further clarity on the relationship between the CSP and other education plans, within a staged intervention model. This will be set out within the refreshed Additional Support for Learning Code of Practice.

COPFS holds records of all concluded Fatal Accident Inquiries dating back to 1 April 2013.

For that period, the longest duration from the date of death to the conclusion of the Fatal Accident Inquiry was in relation to the FAI into the death of Boguslaw Kopec. The date of Mr Kopec’s death was 13 March 2011. A First Notice commencing the FAI process was issued on 24 August 2020 and the Inquiry commenced on 9 November 2020. Evidence was concluded on 3 December 2020 and the Sheriff’s Determination was published on 11 March 2021.

The investigation into Mr Kopec’s death was hampered by difficulties tracing and obtaining the evidence of essential witnesses. In addition, Inquiry proceedings could only be commenced after criminal proceedings had been ruled out. Nevertheless, the Crown at that time acknowledged that the time taken to conduct its death investigation in this case had been far too long and apologised for the fact that its investigation and the Inquiry proceedings were not concluded sooner.

COPFS has significantly reformed its processes in recent years to improve the quality of death investigations and reduce the time taken to investigate deaths and bring FAIs to court. However, in some cases FAIs have taken too long to commence and we understand the impact that waiting for investigations to conclude has on families.

The number of exclusions in primary and secondary schools broken down by local authority from 2005-06 is set out in Table 1 and Table 2.

Statistics on the number of exclusions in primary and secondary schools broken down by pupil stage for 2002-03-2022-23 are published in Table 1.5 of the school exclusions 2022-23 statistics.

Table 1. Cases of exclusion in primary schools by local authority since 2005-06

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-36103 on 15 April 2025. 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

Responsibility for the delivery of the transmission network infrastructure including compliance with safety standards, sits with the transmission owner working within a regulatory framework overseen by Ofgem and other relevant regulators such as the Health and Safety Executive.

COPFS does not hold this information. However, any decision to hold a Fatal Accident Inquiry is ordinarily not taken until other proceedings, including criminal proceedings, have been completed or ruled out.

COPFS would not expect to be made aware of any disciplinary action which results from a Fatal Accident Inquiry.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-36103 on 15 April 2025. 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 Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) have provided some of the information requested. According to SFRS data since 2009-2010 there have been a total of 39 lithium-ion battery related fires and incidents in purpose-built flats, converted flats and tenement buildings.

SFRS aims to capture additional data, via their Incident Recording System on any fires, suspected or confirmed, relating to rechargeable lithium-ion batteries. There is ongoing work being undertaken by the SFRS led Electrical Infrastructure Working Group to better understand the risks to communities from fires linked with lithium-ion batteries.

The proposed changes to religious observance (RO) and religious and moral education (RME) in schools will bring legislation into line with existing RO guidance on taking the child’s views into account when their parent/carer exercises their right to withdraw the child from RO and RME.

The Scottish Government has noted the recommendations from the concluding observations of the periodic reports of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child. We are confident that our proposal to amend the legislation on RO and RME in schools is in line with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and will strengthen our commitment to upholding children’s rights in all aspects of their lives, including education.