A 25 PER CENT increase in cremation and burial fees in Hyndburn was slammed as "a tax on the dead" at a meeting last night.

The price hike was among proposals unveiled by Hyndburn Council's ruling Tory group at the budget meeting.

Conservatives plan to freeze Hyndburn's share of council tax, but increases from Lancashire County Council (5.5 per cent) and Lancashire Police (8.5 per cent) will see the overall bill for Hyndburn households rise by 4.8 per cent.

Council leader Coun Peter Britcliffe said increased cremation and burial fees were necessary to protect graves from vandals and give bereaved relatives peace of mind. Money generated by the price rise would go towards security patrols for cemeteries, crematorium improvements and new headstones.

Labour leader Coun Ken Curtis said: "Last year when we put cremation fees up five per cent, Coun Britcliffe called it an attack on the dead. Now he wants to put the fees up by 25 per cent. If that's not an attack on the dead, then I don't know what is."

Labour councillor Tim O'Kane said the rise was "hypocrisy". It smacked of opportunism and he asked whether the Tories had decided to raise burial fees before or after the recent flu epidemic.

Coun Leslie Jackson said the rise would hit bereaved families hard and suggested extra money should be raised through council tax, so the whole community shared the burden of making cemeteries safer.

Coun Dave Parkins accused the Tories of breaking their pre-election pledge to cut council tax by four times the rate of inflation. But Conservative leader Peter Britcliffe said the Tories could have cut council tax, but had instead decided to put money back into the council's depleted reserve fund. He said it was a responsible budget which would achieve the ruling group's aims of regeneration, better cleansing services, setting up area councils and not increasing Hyndburn's share of the council tax.

Coun Curtis said a generous cash settlement from the Government and the fact that the council was not rate-capped had made it easy for the Conservatives to keep council tax at its current rate.

The final budget will be decided at a policy and resources committee meeting on March 1 when both groups have the chance to amend the proposed budget.

Lancashire County Council, whose services make up most of the council tax bill, will finalise its plans at county hall today.

Council tax figures for Hyndburn 2000/2001 (subject to confirmation by Lancashire County Council and Hyndburn Council):

Band A £656.65; Band B £766.10; Band C £875.53; Band D £984.98; Band E £1,203.86; Band F £1,422.75; Band H £1,969.96.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.