Petition · past parliament
Prevent authorities from cremating bodies against the wishes of the deceased
Rejected
21 signatures
What the petition asks
We call on political representatives to urgently amend the Coronavirus Bill 2019-21 to reflect the human rights of religious minorities.
The Government should not neglect their responsibilities in upholding Article 9 of both the European Convention on Human Rights and the Human Rights Act 1998.
The Government should not neglect their responsibilities in upholding Article 9 of both the European Convention on Human Rights and the Human Rights Act 1998.
The bill as currently drafted will allow designated local authorities to disregard section 46(3) of the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984, which is designed to prevent a local authority from being able to cremate a body against the wishes of the deceased.
This will disregard the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion. This includes the freedom to manifest one’s religion or belief in worship, teaching, practice, and observance.
This will disregard the right to freedom of thought, conscience, and religion. This includes the freedom to manifest one’s religion or belief in worship, teaching, practice, and observance.
Why it was rejected
There was already a petition about this issue. Duplicates are rejected so signatures collect in one place.
You may wish to sign this petition which calls for the same action: Allow coronavirus victims to be buried according to their religious beliefs.
You can find out more about coronavirus and how you can protect yourself and others here:
NHS website: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
UK Government website: https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus
You can read NHS tips to help if you are worried about coronavirus here: https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/every-mind-matters/coronavirus-covid-19-anxiety-tips
You may also be interested to know that because of the large number of petitions that have been started in relation to coronavirus, the Petitions Committee has been questioning the Government about its response to the coronavirus outbreak.
Find out more and watch the Committee put questions suggested by petitioners to Government Ministers and the Deputy Chief Medical Officer: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/326/petitions-committee/news/145767/committee-question-deputy-chief-medical-officer-and-ministers-on-coronavirus-response/
Read correspondence with Government Ministers asking further questions: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/326/petitions-committee/publications/3/correspondence/
You can find out more about coronavirus and how you can protect yourself and others here:
NHS website: https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/
UK Government website: https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus
You can read NHS tips to help if you are worried about coronavirus here: https://www.nhs.uk/oneyou/every-mind-matters/coronavirus-covid-19-anxiety-tips
You may also be interested to know that because of the large number of petitions that have been started in relation to coronavirus, the Petitions Committee has been questioning the Government about its response to the coronavirus outbreak.
Find out more and watch the Committee put questions suggested by petitioners to Government Ministers and the Deputy Chief Medical Officer: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/326/petitions-committee/news/145767/committee-question-deputy-chief-medical-officer-and-ministers-on-coronavirus-response/
Read correspondence with Government Ministers asking further questions: https://committees.parliament.uk/committee/326/petitions-committee/publications/3/correspondence/
Timeline
| 21 Mar 2020 | Petition opened for signatures |
| 14 Apr 2020 | Rejected by the Petitions Committee |
Key facts
Signatures
21
Status
Rejected
Rejected
14 Apr 2020
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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.