Coronavirus Bill amended to respect burial rules
THE GOVERNMENT amended its Coronavirus Bill on Monday to address concerns raised over the prospect of forced cremations.
The JC understands that legislation around enforced cremation was amended to respect the strict laws around burial in the Jewish and Muslim faiths.
When it was unveiled last week as part of the government’s emergency legislation to help tackle the spread of Covid-19, the Bill over-ruled the law that made it illegal for local authorities to cremate bodies against their or their family’s wishes. But this section has now been re-written.
Discussions took place on Monday morning to ensure that the Bill’s language was acceptable to those on the Opposition front benches.
One Labour source confirmed to the JC that there was no opposition on the party’s frontbench to the amendment.
The Bill was expected to pass the Lords on Wednesday.
After the 329-page Coronavirus Bill cleared the Commons on Monday, a government spokesperson said: “We have worked closely with faith groups, MPs and local authorities to reassure them that we are fully committed to respecting religious practices.
“We recognise the huge importance of this and will do everything we can to maintain the right for a person or their loved one to have their preferences respected and the wishes of the bereaved upheld.
“These emergency measures are only intended to be an absolute last resort.”
Communal sources praised the work of Conservative Ministers Robert Jenrick and Penny Mordaunt in listening to concerns over burial rights.
Marie van der Zyl, President of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, expressed her gratitude to the government for working with the Jewish community to amend legislation in order to protect the religious freedoms of religious minorities:
Mrs van der Zyl said: “We would like to extend our deep and sincere thanks to the government for working with us to amend this legislation to protect the final wishes and religious freedoms of the deceased. There could be few things more sacred. In particular, we are grateful to Health Secretary Matt Hancock, Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick, Paymaster General Penny Mordaunt, Communities Minister Simon Clarke and the Prime Minister’s Special Envoy for Freedom of Religion and Belief, Rehman Chishti, for acting speedily to address the concerns raised by Jewish and Muslim communities.
“Our thanks go also to Naz Shah MP for her own proposed amendment, and to Wes StreetingMP, Co-Chair of the APPG on British Jews. This has been an inspiring example of interfaith solidarity and responsive government.”
Labour’s Naz Shah said: “I’m so relieved that the government have listened to what we’ve said about religious burials for Muslim and Jewish people and have brought forward an amendment to address our concerns.”