"Disgraceful": Government red tape causes funeral to be cancelled
A local council has cancelled a funeral just 24 hours before it was set to take place due to government red tape.
Ever since Shellharbour local Judy passed away, her brother Ron had been working hard to give her a decent send off.
However, less than one day before her planned funeral, the Shellharbour Council cancelled the service over an unpaid burial fee.
Ron had been liaising with two government agencies to get payment to council for the burial, which A Current Affair said was a matter of one government organisation waiting for a simple sign off from another government agency.
Confirmation of the payment came through just one day after the funeral should have gone ahead.
Ron was left heartbroken over the cancellation and said the council was "very disrespectful" in their dealings, and said he is owed an apology.
"Disgraceful in fact. Low-life mongrels to do that to any family in this sort of situation," Ron told ACA.
He says the most devastating part was calling family one by one, including Judy's intellectually disabled son, to deliver the news, as he recalled, "He was in tears. I had to get his support worker over just to calm him down."
Shellharbour City Council told A Current Affair via email it was "unable to grant interment rights which are legally required before a burial because the fee hadn't been paid".
They went on to say in a statement, "Shellharbour City Council acknowledges the complexity of the burial process and apologises for the hurt the family has experienced."
Image credits: A Current Affair