Labour has been blamed for pushing the average cost of a cremation beyond £1,000 for the first time. Latest industry records show the price of dying has risen to an all-time high, with charges at some crematoria soaring by 20% in a year.

This has been blamed on the hike in employer National Insurance contributions imposed by Chancellor Rachel Reeves. It means that while the average cost of a cremation was around £966 last year, it is now £1,020, with some places charging significantly more.

In Amersham, Bucks, the price to cremate a loved-one has rocketed from £790 in 2024 to £945 this year, and in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, the basic fee has shot up by more than £152 in just 12 months.

The Maryhill area of Glasgow, remains one of the cheapest places in the UK, with fees of £695 this year, an increase of only £30. Since April, all employers have been stung by Rachel Reeves’s hike on the amount of NI businesses have to pay on staff wages. The rate has shot up from 13.8% on employees’ earnings above £9,100 last year, to 15% on salaries above £5,000 this year.

The Federation of Burial and Cremation Authorities represents around 85% of all cremation authorities in Britain.

CEO Mike Birkinshaw told the Sunday Express the funeral sector was “no different” to other businesses hit by Ms Reeves’s policies.

“The average crematorium employs 10 full-time members of staff and the average employer NI increase per employee is circa £800 per annum,” he said.

“This adds a further burden of £8,000 per year for the average budget. The 1.2% increase in employer NI is a further reason we expect to see increases in cremation costs in the future.”

Mr Birkinshaw also pointed out burial fees had risen by 2.4% between 2023 and 2024. The majority of crematoria are fuelled using gas, either natural or LPG (liquefied pet-roleum gas).

Mathew Crawley, chief executive of the Institute of Cemetery and Crematorium Management, agreed NI costs were a factor, coupled with rising energy prices.

He added: “Energy costs will certainly have a part to play in the increase of costs associated with cremations, as the country continues to feel the impact of energy price rises.”