Chamber and committees

Registration opened on 15 June 2017, and delivery of Baby Boxes nationwide began on 15 August 2017 for all babies born and resident in Scotland.

The total number of Baby Boxes issued since the introduction of the Baby Box programme up to 3 January 2025 is 324,968. We are unable to provide the number of Baby Boxes delivered in the Aberdeen area as we only record the number of Baby Boxes distributed by Health Board area. Since the start of the programme 35,278 Baby Boxes have been issued in NHS Grampian.

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.

The Scottish Government does not have responsibility for addressing the improper disposal of used hypodermic needles. We expect that NHS Boards, drug and alcohol treatment services, and third sector organisations will have their own plans in place to address this issue.

Injecting equipment provision (IEP) is a key harm reduction intervention. Public Health Scotland publish information on IEP in Scotland, including the number of outlets, attendances, and the types of injecting equipment distributed to people who used illicit drugs. The latest release, covering 2022-23, is available at https://publichealthscotland.scot/publications/injecting-equipment-provision-in-scotland/injecting-equipment-provision-in-scotland-2022-to-2023/.

Information is not available centrally on the number of under-18-year-olds who have received medical treatment after being accidentally stuck by improperly disposed hypodermic needles.

Injecting equipment provision (IEP) is a key harm reduction intervention. Public Health Scotland publish information on IEP in Scotland, including the number of outlets, attendances, and the types of injecting equipment distributed to people who used illicit drugs. The latest release, covering 2022-23, is available at https://publichealthscotland.scot/publications/injecting-equipment-provision-in-scotland/injecting-equipment-provision-in-scotland-2022-to-2023/.

The Scottish Government welcomes the publication and thanks the Chair, Edel Harris for her work. The Scottish Government is now carefully considering these initial findings, including the areas the Chair considers may be capable of early action. A written response to the final report will be published within six months, following assessment of policy and delivery implications and the affordability of proposals.

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 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).

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