HÀ NỘI — The Government will provide loans to pay for the repatriation of the bodies of victims found dead last month in a container lorry in Essex, the UK, according to Deputy Foreign Minister Bùi Thanh Sơn.
Talking with reporters on Thursday on the sidelines of the National Assembly’s eighth session, Sơn said the loans aim to support the victims’ families to repatriate the dead in a safe and prompt manner.
The provinces where the victims were from are tasked to work with the families to repay the money to the Government, said Sơn.
The Deputy FM added that relevant parties have discussed with the UK side about whether to bring the ashes or the bodies of the victims home, as well as flights and necessary procedures.
If any enterprise wishes to support the families in the work, they should work directly with the localities and the families, he said.

Speaking at the ministry’s press briefing on Thursday, the ministry’s spokesperson Lê Thị Thu Hằng said Vietnamese agencies are working with the UK to complete procedures to repatriate the bodies/ashes of the victims. There is no information from the UK about financial support.

According to the ministry, the families of 39 Vietnamese people found dead in a lorry in England last month will have to cover the costs to repatriate their relatives’ remains.

Local authorities are asking the families whether they wanted repatriation of the bodies or the ashes brought back.

The fee to transport a jar of ashes to Nội Bài Airport from the UK is £1,370, or VNĐ41.1 million.

Body repatriation in a coffin made of zinc can cost up to £2,208, or VNĐ66 million. — VNS