Proposals for an opt-out system of organ donation will be debated by MSPs on Thursday.

Under current legislation, donors must choose to opt in for their organs to be donated, with many people carrying a donor card.

The proposed change would mean an adult would be presumed to have authorised donation unless they previously opted out.

The bill includes safeguards to ensure that donation will not go ahead where it would be clearly against the person's wishes.

MSPs will be asked to agree to the general principles of the Human Tissue (Authorisation) (Scotland) Bill on Tuesday.

Public health minister Joe FitzPatrick said: "There are still too many people waiting for transplants, with an average of more than 500 people waiting for an organ transplant at any one point in Scotland.

"That's why we are doing all we can to increase organ and tissue donation, and while no single measure can achieve this, evidence shows that opt-out systems can make a difference as part of a package of measures.

"Families will continue to have an important role in the donation process and will be able to provide information about their loved ones' views. I would encourage people to make a decision about donation and tell their family."

Under the proposed system there will be protections for adults without the capacity to understand deemed authorisation, adults who have lived in Scotland for less than 12 months and children under the age of 16.

Since 2008 in Scotland there has been an 89% increase in the number of people who donated organs after their death, from 54 that year to 102 in 2017/18.