07 Apr 2021
Government recognises work of ‘unsung heroes’ in funeral sector in response to CMA
Today (7 April 2021), the Ministry of Justice published its response to the Competition and Markets Authority final report.
The response recognises the hard work of funeral directors, their important and often unrecognised role in the community – and sets out an intention to work with the sector to craft a standards framework that will give confidence to bereaved families that the funeral firm they choose will adhere to an agreed and consistent set of high standards when caring for deceased people.
In the introduction, The Ministry of Justice says: “The funeral sector, in one form or another, has provided a valuable service to the country for centuries. The funeral sector is often made up of unsung heroes within the community, with much of their work unseen by the public. The government recognises the hard work of the funeral sector, and further appreciates its dedication through the particular challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic. Funeral directors have met the demands of this particularly challenging period, often providing informal bereavement support in addition to their usual services.”
The NAFD is delighted that the points it has consistently made across the past twelve months (and since the CMA launched its investigation in 2018) – including the impact of the pandemic on the profession, both now and in the future – and the significant cross sector work that has already gone into addressing this issue, both within the NAFD and through the Funeral Service Consumer Standards Review – have been heard. In the response, the Government recognises that now is not the time for wholescale regulation of funeral firms and instead will work with the sector to achieve this outcome through an enhanced approach to the monitoring of industry standards.
NAFD Chief Executive Jon Levett said:
“The NAFD looks forward to working closely with the Ministry of Justice to demonstrate that our revised inspections regime and comprehensive industry code of practice (The Funeral Director Code), which has been created in consultation with consumer bodies and representatives from across the sector through the work of the FSCSR, and our work to create the NAFD inspectorate team, an independent body which will oversee standards monitoring, inspections and complaints, will provide Government with the assurance it needs that the funeral sector is committed to acting with transparency, high standards and in the interests of bereaved people.”
Read the response here.