L/Cpl Allan Douglas was buried in Aberdeen in 2006

Adam Ingram has said the Ministry of Defence (MoD) wants to help bereaved families with a change in the law.

Under current Scottish law there is no provision for fatal accident inquiries into deaths occurring outside Scotland.

The MoD and Ministry of Justice also plan increased financial support for bereaved relatives.

These plans include improvements to accommodation and travel expenses for family members wishing to attend pre-inquest hearings and repatriation ceremonies.

We owe a huge debt of gratitude to all our service personnel who have died on operations, and we will continue to provide the best possible support to their loved ones Adam Ingram Armed Forces Minister

At present only English coroner's courts have the jurisdiction to carry out inquiries when soldiers die overseas, and there is a long backlog of cases.

This has meant Scottish families having to make long journeys into England to hear inquests into the death of their loved ones.

Opposition parties have been campaigning on the issue at Westminster.

Armed Forces Minister Adam Ingram said: "I hope that the law can be changed to allow fatal accident inquiries for Scottish service personnel killed abroad to be held in Scotland.

"This will make it easier for the families and friends of those killed to understand the circumstances of their loved ones death.

He added: "We owe a huge debt of gratitude to all our service personnel who have died on operations, and we will continue to provide the best possible support to their loved ones."

'Work together'

Kenny MacAskill, the cabinet secretary for justice, has been discussing the issue with senior law officers and officials.

A spokesman for the executive said: "We welcome the UK Government's desire to work together to reach a solution and we have been in contact with different parts of the UK Government for some time.

"We want a system that would reduce the stress, anguish and delay for bereaved families.

He added: "We need to look at what implications there would be for the many other non-military Scots who die overseas every year."

SNP Westminster group leader and Defence spokesman Angus Robertson MP welcomed the support of the MoD into his proposals for fatal accident inquiries.

He said: "After eight years of inaction by the Labour-Liberal Democrat administration, the new SNP government has acted to ensure that the Scottish legal system plays its part in investigating overseas military deaths."