LONDON, UK.- The UK Government and the Welsh Assembly Government are to issue a Code of Practice setting out how to approach issues surrounding the holding and return of human remains held in museums, Arts Minister Estelle Morris, and Alun Pugh, Minister for Culture, Welsh Language and Sport in the Welsh Assembly Government announced today.

The Code, issued jointly with the museum sector, will set out a framework for responding to claims for the return of human remains in museums in England, Wales and NI. It will also give guidance on the keeping of human remains in museums and, where appropriate, other human remains collections in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It will be published in the Summer.

The Government also intends to establish an Advisory Service, which would make expertise available to institutions to help with decision making under the Code.

Estelle Morris said: "We are determined to set up a fair and equitable framework for the holding of human remains in UK museums, and for a way to consider claims for their repatriation.

"The Government has already acted to implement the key recommendation of the Working Group on Human Remains. We have changed the law to allow museums to move human remains out of their collections.

"Today's announcement is the right response to the claims of indigenous peoples, particularly in Australia, for the return of ancestral remains, and is consistent with the terms of the Joint Prime Ministerial Declaration."

Alun Pugh said: "I endorse the issuing of a Code of Practice for the care of human remains in museums. The Code will provide clear guidance for museums in what can be a sensitive area."