Written question asked by Barry Sheerman (Labour) on Wednesday, 1 March 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Friday, 3 March 2006. It was answered by Anne McGuire (Labour) on Monday, 27 March 2006 on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.

Graveyards

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what steps the Health and Safety Executive is taking to ensure safety in graveyards from headstones; and what guidance the Health and Safety Executive has issued to burial authorities about the safety of headstones.

Answer: On this issue, HSE supports the Department for Constitutional Affairs (DCA), who have overall responsibility for burial law, to ensure that the safety of headstones is taken into account as part of the overall management of cemeteries. In 2004, the Chairman of the Health and Safety Commission wrote to all Local authority Chief Executives, setting out the need for a sensitive and proportionate approach to headstone safety. HSE is now assisting the DCA in preparing advice, which, following consultation, they plan to publish later this year.

Secondary information