The mother of a 16-year-old girl who took her own life by overdosing on anti-anxiety pills has told MSPs parental consent should be required to prescribe medicine to under 18s.

Annette McKenzie told members of the public petitions committee laws on the prescription of medicine to children must change.

Her daughter Britney Mazzoncini, of Glasgow, was given a month's supply of anti-anxiety pills by her GP.

Britney took her own life with the prescribed medicine 16 days later.

Her mother only found out about the prescription after her daughter's death.

She described her daughter's death as leaving her "devastated and broken" but it gave her an insight into "a fault in the system" which is "letting down young people".

Under the Age of Legal Capacity (Scotland) Act 1991, GPs can prescribe medicine to young people if they deem the patient "is capable of understanding the nature and possible consequences of the procedure or treatment".

The act also sets 16 as the age when a person has the legal capacity to make their own medical decisions.

Ms McKenzie said her child did not know the strength of the medication she was prescribed.

She told MSPs on Thursday: "My daughter didn't understand at 16 years old the severity and strength of the medication she was given.

"She went to the doctor that day to ask for help. She didn't go expecting to be given pills."

She added: "I know a lot of people have concerns that my petition in particular will discourage young people from going to seek help from their doctor.

"To say that a child won't go to the doctor to ask for help, I don't believe that, because a child at that age isn't going to a doctor to ask for pills, they are going to speak out, to ask to be helped."

According to figures from NHS Scotland, more than 15,000 people aged 19 or younger were prescribed anti-depressants in 2014/15.

A further 12,313 youngsters were prescribed medicines to treat "hypnotics and anxiolytics".

In the days leading up to her daughter's death, Ms McKenzie thought she was suffering from tiredness and being "lazy".

She later found out these were side-effects of the medication.

The committee will contact the Scottish Government, the Scottish Association for Mental Health, the General Medical Council and a range of other organisations over the prescription of medicine to young people.