Parents of Manchester Arena bombing victims distraught after 'patronising' Home Office meeting
26.02.2023 - 17:55
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
The mothers of two teenage victims of the Manchester Arena bombing tragedy say they are still unable to grieve due to rules around registering a death if it is subject to an inquest. Lisa Rutherford and Caroline Curry met Home Office officials last week to discuss this issue - which they have been campaigning on for years - but have been left 'upset'.
This meeting, which has only added to their distress, comes as the third volume of a major report into the horrendous events of May 22, 2017, is set to be released this coming week. The atrocity claimed the lives of 22 concert goers, including Chloe Rutherford, 17, and Liam Curry, 19, Lisa and Caroline's children.
Relatives say the couple, who’d dreamed of one day getting married, were “inseparable” in life. Under current legislation, family members can't provide the information needed to register a death if it has been the subject of an inquest. Details are instead sent to the relevant authorities by a coroner but Lisa and Caroline say this is preventing them from grieving for their children more than five years on from their loss.
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In an interview with GB News to be broadcast today, Caroline said: “All I want to do is give these details, his name, his address, my name as the informant. That’s all I want to do. That to me will begin my grieving process. So why should a bureaucrat take that away from me as a parent?"
Speaking about her son Liam, she added: "I just want to be able to do the right thing for our kids. I wish these ministers could just for one minute take off the office job head and put on the parent head."
Lisa added: “We have had so much taken away