NAFD forms Stormont cross party group
The National Association of Funeral Directors (NAFD) has followed up its successful campaigns relating to pandemic ’flu, VAT on funerals and VAT on doctors’ fees – and strengthened its position as the voice of the profession – by forming a new cross party parliamentary group for the funeral sector at Stormont.
Under the chairmanship of David McClarity MLA, the Northern Ireland Cross Party Funerals Group will operate in much the same way as the NAFD’s other parliamentary groups, in that it will respond to and address the concerns of the general public on matters of death and bereavement and raise issues of concern to the funeral service. The Group will also provide members of the Northern Ireland Assembly with informed opinion on all matters relating to the funeral service in the Province and raise public awareness of the contribution that funeral directors make to Northern Ireland society.
Members of the funeral sector’s newest parliamentary group include Dominic Bradley MLA, who takes on the role of vice chairman; Mervyn Storey MLA, who will act as secretary along with the NAFD, and Kieran McCarthy MLA as treasurer. The Group has been approved by the Northern Ireland Assembly’s Committee on Standards and Privileges and aims to hold its first meeting at Stormont in February/early March.
“The NAFD is unique in being the only trade association with representation in Westminster, the Scottish Parliament and the Welsh Assembly and with the ability to influence decisions in Brussels through the European Liaison Group. Now, with the formation of this new cross party group, we can debate the issues that matter to funeral directors across Northern Ireland,” says NAFD chief executive officer Alan Slater.
“We are very keen to understand the specific challenges they face and how legislation affecting the sector, such as the new cremation regulations, will impact on them and the families they serve. To that end we would like to invite all Irish funeral directors – from both the Province and the Republic – to make their voices heard at an open meeting.”
Following its AGM at the Comfort Hotel in Antrim on February 18, the Northern Ireland Area Federation of the NAFD is hosting an open forum – to be attended by the Association’s national president, chief executive officer and national PR officer – at which the key topics under discussion will be pre-payment of disbursements, Social Fund payments and political representation at Stormont.
Funeral directors who are interested in attending this meeting should contact William Millar, President of the Northern Ireland Area Federation of the National Association of Funeral Directors, on +44 (0)2870 343350 or email william@ivanmurdockandsons.co.uk
