Glasgow Hebrew Burial Society has rejected a request from an out-of-town member to transfer his burial dues, claiming that it cannot afford to do so.

David Sakol, 78, who has paid subscriptions to the society for 60 years, asked if his burial rights could be transferred to the United Synagogue in London, where he has lived for seven years.

But GHBS chair Alan Shenkin said its policy of not allowing transfers of burial funds was "the only option" to keep its cemeteries open.

Mr Sakol - whose children and grandchildren live in America - said it would be more convenient for him to be buried in London.

But it would cost around £5,000 to join the US burial society from scratch, although the US had offered a discounted fee of £4,000.

We stand to lose an enormous amount of money

He added that he had been told that if a United Synagogue member wanted to transfer their burial rights, the US would refund 80 per cent of dues paid to facilitate the transfer.

But Mr Shenkin maintained that GHBS would stand to "lose an enormous amount of money" if it allowed transfers because there was a net movement of members leaving Glasgow.

The US could manage transfers because "it is an enormous organisation with substantial capital assets. But most, if not all, provincial societies are not able to offer that arrangement."

Mr Sakol responded that he could understand the reasoning, "but I think it's based on wrong calculations".

At US community services, director David Kaplan explained that in cases where new members had been with independent Orthodox burial societies, "we work hard with each person to ease their transition.

"Where we are able to build a reciprocal agreement with those burial societies, we do so."