Baby death rate in Scotland at highest for a decade

There were 3.9 infant deaths for every thousand live births in 2021

The death rate for babies under one year old in Scotland is at its highest level in 10 years, new figures show.

There were 3.9 infant deaths for every thousand live births in 2021, increasing from 3.1 the previous year.

With 47,786 live births registered, Scotland's birth rate was 2% higher than in 2020 - but still the second lowest since records began.

The National Records of Scotland (NRS) said current birth rates were too low for the population to replace itself.

The figures were released as an investigation is ongoing into a spike in newborn deaths in Scotland.

• Probe into second spike in newborn deaths

• Births in Scotland fall to record low

At least 18 babies under four weeks old died in March, a rate of 4.6 per 1,000 births. The average mortality rate among newborns is just over two per 1,000 births,

A a preliminary probe showed the spike in deaths was not linked to Covid.

The new data was released as part of the NRS vital events publication.

Pandemic effect

The NRS report found that there were 15,801 fewer births than deaths registered in Scotland 2021.

A total of 63,587 deaths were registered last year. This was 5,827 excess deaths compared to the five-year average before the pandemic.

Julie Ramsay, NRS statistician for vital events, said the effect of the pandemic was still evident.

She said that although births had increased slightly, they were still low in historical terms.

Ms Ramsay said: "The fertility rate increased slightly to 1.31 after falling to 1.29 last year, its lowest ever level. For a population to replace itself this figure needs to be around 2.1."

The report also showed the impact of Covid restrictions on marriage ceremonies - the number of marriages doubled in a year from 11,831 to 24,284 in 2021.

There were 819 same-sex marriages and 499 civil partnerships.