SNP ministers have been urged to set a deadline for reviews into deaths in custody to begin and offer families greater support.

The proposals, put forward by the Scottish LibDems, includes setting a deadline for the commencement of reviews into custodial deaths and a guarantee to families they will receive the necessary support when trying to navigate legal proceedings.

LibDems justice spokesperson, Liam McArthur, has also called on SNP Justice Sectary Keith Brown to guarantee these reforms will come into effect by the start of next year .

A Scottish Government-commissioned report last year found there should be an independent inquiry into every custody death and warned that the fatal accident inquiry (FAI) system has “a lack of family engagement at every step of the journey.”

The document called for investigations into deaths in custody to begin almost immediately after a death and completed “within a matter of months.”

In comparison, the FAI process currently used has significant delays before investigating a death.

Earlier this year, Scottish Liberal Democrat analysis revealed that the average time for a FAI to be completed was three years, with some inquiries remaining outstanding after almost a decade.

In his letter to Mr Brown, Mr McArthur underlined the need to learn lessons from the failure of the current FAI system and called on the Justice Secretary to implement three key components in the new system.

Mr McArthur said: "Families are facing long waits to discover what happened to loved ones who perished in tragic circumstances.

"I remain deeply concerned about the current state of the Fatal Accident Inquiry system presently tasked with examining deaths in custody, and am sceptical about the claim that 'real progress' is being made in improving this process.

"Scottish Liberal Democrat research revealing that some inquiries are remaining outstanding after almost a decade and independent reports suggesting that the FAI system 'works to normalise suffering and death in prison' indicate that there is an ongoing need for urgent reform.

"The Government needs to commit to a deadline for kicking off an investigation into a death in custody.

"It also needs to ensure that legal aid will be provided for families and next of kin when investigations into custodial deaths take place."

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: "The Scottish Government is committed to making improvements to the response to, and experiences of, families impacted by a death in prison custody. The Cabinet Secretary updated Parliament on 22 June about the ongoing work in implementing the recommendations of the independent review into the response to deaths in prison custody.

“The Lord Advocate is constitutionally responsible for the investigation of sudden, unexpected and unexplained deaths in Scotland. These functions are exercised independently.

"The Crown Office has made significant changes to its working practices and has delivered improvements in the investigation of deaths, which has already resulted in reductions in the duration of death investigations, and will continue to do so.”