Ulster Unionist Councillor Julie Flaherty, who has been campaigning for the Children`s Funeral Fund to be established in Northern Ireland, has called on the Communities Minister, Deirdre Hargey MLA to explain why bereaved families here are still waiting and tell us when it will actually happen.
Councillor Flaherty said:
"It is nothing short of shameful that Northern Ireland remains the only part of the United Kingdom where the cost of burial of a child under 18 will not be covered by the Children’s Funeral Fund.
“Surely it is not asking too much for bereaved families here in Northern Ireland to be given the same support, understanding and respect as bereaved parents in the rest of the UK.
“My UUP colleagues are fully behind this, but the political will just is just not there from some in Stormont to roll this out. This is a devolved matter and the Minister for Communities should be explaining why we are still waiting and tell us when we can expect it to happen. 18 months on from NDNA we seem to be getting nowhere. I’m very, very disappointed.
“This is a shameful deficit and these ‘cut and paste’ answers from Ministers on this issue are just not good enough - we deserve better.
“This is not about politics - this is about people.”