Ministers will look with the 'utmost priority' at the issue of grieving families not being able to personally register the death of a loved one after an inquest or public inquiry, the Commons has heard. It followed an impassioned speech by an MP who held back tears as she addressed the House in a debate on Wednesday night on behalf of the families of teenage sweethearts Liam Curry and Chloe Rutherford, who were murdered in the Manchester Arena bombing five years ago.
Only relatives or certain others are qualified by law to register a death and usually, it's done within five days at a local register office. It's understood, however, the situation can change due to a coronial process.
Emma Lewell-Buck, the Labour MP for South Shields, spoke in the House of Commons in March, saying Liam and Chloe's parents wanted to formerly register their deaths in person. They were, she said, 'being denied this final act for their children' by the controversial system.
Now in major development Home Office minister Tom Pursglove told the Commons the Government was considering changes to the Births and Deaths Registration Act in the wake of the case.
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Ms Lewell-Buck urged ministers to change the law as it would allow the families to begin grieving properly. Families, she said, were unable to register the deaths of relatives if they have been subject to an inquest or public inquiry.
Mr Pursglvoe told MPs: "I have discussed with members the possibility of providing families with the choice rather than an obligation to be involved in the registration arrangements. We have also discussed options around combining the family's involvement with the coroner’s existing role. These are all possibilities.
"But as our discussion this evening has shown, this is a complex issue involving more than one system. As such, we do have to be mindful of a very real concern around the potential for unintended consequences.
"This needs to be thought through carefully and sensitively. We must not make any changes which, although well-intentioned, might cause confusion or additional distress for bereaved families because of additional complexity in the system.
"But I absolutely reiterate my commitment to looking at this issue with the utmost priority and to keep members updated at every step of the way."
Ms Lewell-Buck had said the rationale for not allowing families to register deaths after an inquest or inquiry was that it would be 'too distressing'. "It is surely not up to the Government or ministers to decide what is and what isn’t too distressing for a family," she added.
"Last Sunday marked five years since 22 people were murdered in the Manchester Arena terror attack. My constituents, Chloe Rutherford, aged 17, and Liam Curry, aged 19, a young couple deeply in love, full of hope for their futures, were brutally taken from their families in this attack.
"Since 2020, Chloe and Liam’s parents have spent days in the public inquiry listening to every agonising detail of that horrific night. As the public inquiry sessions have come to an end they have been told that due to the Births and Deaths Registration Act they cannot register their own precious children’s deaths."
Ms Lewell-Buck held back tears as she spoke, adding: “Families need to be able to grieve. They cannot grieve if they cannot do this final official act for their children. Because what is going to happen is the registration will be done on their behalf by a registrar, effectively a stranger, a person who never, ever knew their children.
"As their mams say, 'look in the mirror, look in your heart, and you tell me as a parent, if it was your child, would you be happy with a stranger registering your child’s death? It is the last thing we feel we can do as parents'."
Chloe, 17, and Liam, 19, both from South Shields in the North East, were described at the public inquiry into the attack as 'inseparable' teenage sweethearts. They died side by side on May 22, 2017 after an Ariana Grande concert at the venue - two of 22 lives lost.
Sixty three people were seriously injured and 111 hospitalised in what was the deadliest terrorist attack in the UK since the 7/7 London bombings in 2005.
Liam's mother, Caroline Curry, and Chloe's parents, Lisa and Mark Rutherford, have been present to hear evidence at the Manchester Arena inquiry, which has now drawn to a close with no more scheduled evidence to be heard. Liam's father, Andrew, sadly died just two months before the Arena bombing, after a long illness.
The Home Office told the Manchester Evening News in March: "The Births and Deaths Registration Act outlines that any death which results in an inquest, including mass casualty events, must be registered by the local registrar on receipt of the Coroner's Certificate. Victims' families are able to request a copy of a death certificate following registration."
