NAFD keeps parliamentary campaign on track

The National Association of Funeral Directors (NAFD) is determined not to allow its campaign for reform of the system of Social Fund payments for funerals to be sidetracked by personnel changes at the Department for Work & Pensions (DWP) and will work with the All Party Parliamentary Funerals and Bereavement Group to raise its concerns with the new Ministers appointed as a consequence of the Cabinet reshuffle and the fall out from the row over MPs’ expenses.

Yvette Cooper MP is the new Secretary of State and joins the DWP from HM Treasury, where she was Chief Secretary to the Treasury, while Helen Goodman MP is the new Minister responsible for the Social Fund – the third to take up this post in less than a year!

A former senior Treasury civil servant, Ms Goodman left the civil service in 1997 and was briefly director of a Commission on the Future of a Multi-Ethnic Britain before becoming head of strategy for the Children’s Society and then chief executive of the National Association of Toy and Leisure Libraries. She entered Parliament as the Member for Bishop Auckland in 2005.

Stability in Scotland and Europe
When the Scottish Parliament’s Cross Party Funerals and Bereavement Group held its Annual General Meeting in early June the NAFD was delighted that co-conveners Nanette Milne MSP and Stuart McMillan MSP were re-elected.

The Scottish Parliament is currently examining the Group’s proposed solution on retained ashes and the NAFD is hopeful that, in due course, the proposal will be published for consultation throughout Scotland.

“This is an important stage in the campaign. If we can get a common-sense solution adopted for retained ashes in Scotland, this will put more pressure on the UK Government to take similar action,” says NAFD chief executive officer Alan Slater.

The NAFD was also pleased to learn that Malcolm Harbour MEP, who takes a great deal of interest in the funeral sector and has hosted two NAFD delegations to Brussels, has been re-elected to the European Parliament. An NAFD delegation will return to Brussels in December to meet with Mr Harbour, new MEPs and the new European Commission and discuss key cross border issues.

Tackling concerns in Northern Ireland
At the second meeting of the All Party Funerals Group in the Northern Ireland Assembly (June 23) a number of actions were agreed that will help tackle outdated cremation regulations in Northern Ireland.

“We were able to take a significant step forward in terms of addressing the concerns of funeral directors in Northern Ireland, especially in relation to modernising cremation regulations and examining the impact on burial space following major local authority reorganisation in 2011,” adds Alan Slater.

Chairman of the Group David McClarty MLA has initiated an audit of available burial spaces at each local authority to clarify the current situation and help determine what action needs to be taken, while the Group also aims to engage with the Northern Ireland Environment Minister and the Environment Committee in the Assembly to address the issues of cremation regulations and retained ashes.