So says a submission the Dunedin City Council approved this week, providing feedback to a national review of the Burial and Cremation Act 1964.
The nationwide Ministry of Health review is hoped to modernise New Zealand laws on death, burial and funerals, looking at cemetery and burial management, the funeral industry and potential new methods of body disposal.
The council’s submission said a review under way of cemeteries in Dunedin indicated "adequate" availability of plots for burials and ash burials to "2060 and beyond", alongside a good distribution of the 20 cemeteries in the city.
In Dunedin, demand and short-term estimates added up to about 150 burials and 1000 cremations per year.
Council parks and recreation group manager Robert West said suggestions included shifting some responsibility around burials and cremations to local government.
Proposals included councils taking over from medical officers of health for exhumations, and councils managing and maintaining private cemeteries if the owners did not want to, or could not continue to do so.
The council submission said it did not support transferral of responsibility for approval of cremations in places other than in a crematorium from the Ministry of Health to local authorities.
"Some we are supporting and some we are suggesting work really well currently, so why change?" Mr West said.
All councillors supported the submission being sent to the Ministry of Health.
