Thompsons Solicitors has welcomed the appointment of the Right Hon Lord Bonomy to chair the independent commission into infant cremation and the disposal of ashes in Scotland.

The Scottish Government announced it would be setting up the commission in the wake of the baby ash scandal which saw hundreds of parents denied the ashes of their babies at crematoria across the country.

Thompsons is acting for a number of the parents and is helping them campaign for a public inquiry into the scandal. Partner Patrick McGuire said: “The appointment of Lord Bonomy illustrates the seriousness of this issue and the Scottish Government should be commended for acting swiftly in response to the revelations from Mortonhall and other crematoria across the country. However, the Commission does not have the scope to look at individual cases and this is being left to the local authorities to do themselves. It is unrealistic to think that by allowing the councils to investigate their own breaches we will be left with a workable and independent solution.

“The only reasonable course of action which will help parents who have been forced to relive the grief caused by losing a baby is for the Government to call a public inquiry to allow for a thorough and transparent investigation. This is what the parents desperately want and are currently being denied.”

Some of the parents last week met with the Health Minister, Alex Neil MSP in the Scottish Parliament to put forward their case for a public inquiry.