KARRAKATTA CEMETERY
RENEWAL PROGRAM
9. Hon AARON STONEHOUSE to the Leader of the House
representing the Minister for Local Government:
I
refer the minister to recent renewed media interest in the Karrakatta Cemetery
renewal process, and particularly to the interview hosted by Gareth Parker on
6PR's morning show on 4 February, the segment which aired on Channel
Nine's The Pulse on the same date, and a subsequent
segment on Channel Seven's afternoon news bulletin on 5 February.
(1) In light of
this ongoing interest, will the minister undertake to look into the cases of
the Hayward and Bird families, as outlined in those three media pieces?
(2) More
generally, on the understanding that the Metropolitan Cemeteries Board
undertakes historical research prior to designating a grave for renewal, is the
minister able to outline the steps undertaken in the course of that research
and how extensive or otherwise it is?
Hon SUE
ELLERY replied:
I thank the honourable member for
some notice of the question.
(1) Yes. The
Metropolitan Cemeteries Board has advised that the Bird family made a request
for a new grant of right of burial on 12 November 2018 for the grave of
Lorraine and Reginald Hayward. This request was subsequently approved, but was
not repurchased. The MCB has written to the Bird family as part of the renewal
process and advised that the Monument Assessment and Advisory Committee's
initial assessment was to remove the
monument. Should the Bird family wish to have the monument retained, they
may wish to make a submission to the MAAC by December 2020. All submissions
will be considered at the conclusion of the consultation period in December
2020, which may allow repurchasing the grave or keeping the monument in situ.
(2) Section 33 of
the Cemeteries Act 1986 provides the MCB with the ability to preserve graves,
memorials and records which are of
historical significance. The MAAC considers a range of criteria such as a historical
assessment of the area by a historian; an assessment of each individual grave
that considers aesthetic, historical and social value; and an assessment of
submissions received from the public. The assessment notes any significant
names, the number of burials in a grave, and the age and cause of death.
Should
a member of the public identify a monument or grave bearing some significance,
they are encouraged to share the outcomes of their research with the MCB
so it can be considered at the appropriate time.