Further clarification is needed regarding claims by the Anglican Church that it will charge up to $15,000 for the burial component of a funeral.
The Local Government Division and myself have made a number of enquiries with funeral businesses, as well as local government owners of cemeteries, who have informed us they do not anticipate a material increase in the cost of burials as a result of recent changes to the Burial and Cremation Act.
I will be writing to the Anglican Church today requesting they provide their modelling on this potential significant cost increase to justify their claims so that we can better understand the potential significant costs to be faced by Anglican parishioners.
The Government is a strong believer that our Burial and Cremation Act strikes the right balance between protecting the community, while also enabling cemetery managers to do their important work without undue regulatory burden.
Throughout developing the legislation, the Government consulted extensively with stakeholders and the community to ensure we got that balance right.
I encourage the Church to provide their modelling to explain the potential significant cost increase which Anglican parishioners could face which is contrary to what industry stakeholders are suggesting will occur.