In the case of renting the crematorium, the Riga City Council also loses in the Supreme Court / Article / LSM.lv

In the case of leasing the crematorium, the Riga City Council also loses in the Supreme CourtEdgars Kupčs00:00 / 03:36

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The fight against the monopoly in the Riga cremation market has been going on for five years. After sharp criticism from the industry and the Competition Council, a few years ago the Riga City Council held an auction for the right to manage the Riga Crematorium for the next ten years.

However, the auction rules were written in such a way that only the long-term ally of the City Council – the company “Riga Cremation Center – Crematorium” – could acquire the right. The Competition Council and the funeral industry objected. But the company “Funeral Home – Crematorium” went to court. The Supreme Court has now put an end to the dispute.

The company’s lawyer Edgars Timpa informed that further, in accordance with the judgment in Riga, the concluded lease agreement must be terminated by July 2021.

The court has given Riga a year to terminate the illegal agreement and figure out what to do next with the crematorium.

Lawyer Timpa believes that two options are possible. The first: in accordance with the law, a crematorium building and equipment rental auction is held with reasonable requirements.

“The second scenario is to hand over the crematorium with all the equipment for disposal, in other words, by selling what would be natural and possibly correct,” said the lawyer.

However, the Housing and Environment Department of the Riga City Council, which is responsible for the area of ​​burial and has lost in court, has a different opinion.

Inga Gulbe, Deputy Director of the Department, said that two options are being evaluated – to entrust the provision of these services in accordance with the concession procedure, or the local government will perform this function itself. Most likely, the next term will then have to decide on further action.

In order for the municipality to provide this service itself, a new capital company could be established or it should be entrusted to one of the existing municipal companies – it is a matter of form, a matter of decision of the council, Gulbe pointed out. She also added that the service could be provided by the Riga Cemetery Office, “it could just as well be integrated into this structural unit”.

However, the department emphasizes that this will have to be decided by the new council term after the upcoming elections.

Edgars Timpa, a lawyer at the Funeral Home – Crematorium, believes, as the Competition Council once said, that it is necessary to assess whether or not the municipality’s involvement in the cremation business affects the industry, as time has shown that the private sector can provide these services safely.

The scenario that the municipality will provide cremation services itself is possible, but it is very critical from the point of view of competition law, Timpa said.

The financial data of the company “Riga Cremation Center – Crematorium” show that the cremation business in the capital is profitable. Last year, the company had a turnover of more than one million euros, leaving 123,000 in profit.

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