CEMETERIES ACT —
REVIEW
194. Hon Dr BRIAN WALKER to the Leader of the House
representing the Minister for Local Government:
I
refer the minister to the many questions posed both in here and the other place
about renewal at Karrakatta Cemetery during the previous Parliament, and
most specifically to the response given to question without notice 913 on 15 September
2020, confirming that a review of the Cemeteries Act 1986 would commence in
October 2020 and likely conclude in late 2021.
(1) Can the
minister confirm the current status of that review?
(2) Can he
inform the house whether public consultation has commenced; and, if so, on what
date and when is it scheduled to conclude; and, if not, when is it expected to
commence, what form will such consultation take and what deadline, if any, has
been placed upon submissions?
(3) Will the minister consider instructing the
Metropolitan Cemeteries Board to pause any anticipated renewal works until such
time as the review has concluded and any recommendations from it have been
considered?
Hon SUE
ELLERY replied:
I thank the honourable member for
some notice of the question.
(1) Consultation is currently being
undertaken with key stakeholder groups.
(2) Public consultation is expected
to be undertaken in the second half of this year.
(3) There has
traditionally been acknowledgement for the need for cemetery renewal across
both sides of the Western Australian Parliament and bipartisan support for the
longstanding renewal program. Managing burial capacity is a challenging issue
for cemeteries. Renewal of gravesites to provide ongoing capacity for burials
is a regular practice in Australian cemeteries and around the world. As the
renewal process is essential for the ongoing operability of Karrakatta as an
open cemetery, it has been continuing consistent with the Cemeteries Act 1986,
including during the current review.