Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment her Department has made of the adequacy of the availability of land for burials.

The Government is aware of increasing localised pressure on burial spaces in certain parts of the country and we welcome information from burial providers and local communities about the situation in their areas, as this is helpful in enabling us to build an up-to-date national picture. However, we do not have day-to-day operational responsibility for burial grounds which are managed locally. It is a matter for each authority to allocate local resources in line with local priorities.

The Law Commission is currently consulting on its proposals for reforms to burial law. The consultation includes consideration of the availability of burial space in England and Wales. The Government looks forward to the Law Commission’s final recommendations in due course.The consultation can be found at: https://lawcom.gov.uk/project/burial-and-cremation/.