There are no dedicated hospital beds in north and north-east Scotland for youngsters with mental health conditions.
Children in the region face a round-trip of hundreds of miles to get treatment at a specialist centre in Dundee.
Fears have been raised that the lack of local facilities could damage young people’s chances of recovery, taking them away from their families or leaving them languishing in adult units.
Last night, Scottish Liberal Democrat health spokesman Jim Hume accused the “hypocritical” Scottish Government of ignoring the needs of people in the north and north-east.
He said: “Children and young adults with mental health conditions who live in the north and north-east of Scotland simply cannot be expected to travel hundreds of miles to receive treatment.
“Specialised services need to be available locally, not just in the central belt, so vulnerable young people can remain close to their family and friends.
“This is just the latest in a series of issues showing that most of Scotland is being forgotten about by the SNP administration.
“Surely they realise the hypocrisy of signing up to a campaign calling for a greater proportion of health spending in England to be allocated to mental health services when they are doing the very opposite in Scotland?”
Figures released by Health Minister Jamie Hepburn show that expenditure on mental health in the NHS in Scotland has declined since 2009-10, when it represented 12.77% of the department’s budget.
Last year, spending on mental health represented 11.88% of the budget.
Figures from the Mental Welfare Commission reveal 207 young people were admitted to non-specialist units – which are largely adult wards – in 2014-15, an increase from 149 in 2008-09.
Mr Hepburn insisted mental health was a “priority” for the Scottish Government.
He added: “Earlier this year a new £8million unit for child and adolescent mental health opened in Dundee, increasing the number of specialist adolescent inpatient beds from 42 to 48.
“This outstanding new building provides top quality specialist care for the north region, and in response to feedback during the design process includes accommodation for visiting families.”