Tánaiste hits out at 'extraordinarily expensive' cost of funerals
Tánaiste Joan Burton has tonight criticised the high cost of funerals.
She insisted that something needs to be done to help families cope with the costs of burying loved ones.
She has told an Oireachtas Committee that community welfare officers will do their best to help any family that needs help with costs.
She criticised graveyard and funeral operators however, saying that their charges are far too high.
"Funerals are, particularly in the Dublin area, are extraordinarily expensive," she said.
"That trend, thankfully, has not been as extreme outside of Dublin.
"Someone was talking to me recently about the cost of a small urn on a family grave. First of all they thought they'd be able to do it themselves, they weren't, and secondly the cost they were charged was staggering."
