Commenting on the Scottish Government’s announcement today of a commission into practices at Scotland’s crematoria, Scottish Labour’s Jackie Baillie MSP, said:
“This partial U-turn by the Scottish Government only goes some of the way to bringing this sorry and deeply worrying chapter to a close.
“But it doesn’t answer the questions many bereaved Scottish families have, most importantly, what happened to their children’s ashes?
“A Commission which merely looks ahead, without considering the past, denies parents the right to know what happened to their children. The scandal of the disposal of ashes isn’t just limited to one crematorium. It is clear that poor practice and standards existed across Scotland – the Scottish Government needs to set up an inquiry which looks at what happened and gives parents a voice and an opportunity to be heard.
“The Scottish Government accepts that there were widespread failings and that practices and perhaps legislation need to change. Yet they remain determined not to allow the opportunity for answers to be given, nor for the scale of failures to be understood. Their stance baffles me and will be of great concern to parents who lost their children.”
Follow Jackie Baillie MSP on Twitter: @jackiebmsp
