§ MR. O'LEARYasked the Chief Secretary for Ireland, Whether he is aware that, at the meeting convened by the Public Health Committee of the Corporation of Dublin eleven medical sanitary officers who attended unanimously reported—
that the high death rate of Dublin was in a great measure due to the unsanitary state of the houses, to remedy which a new Building Act and the application of the Artizans Dwellings Act were urgently required, and that all houses hitherto condemned by the medical sanitary officers already reported upon should be closed;whether he is aware that such Report has never been published; whether any further Reports have been received by the Public Health Committee; and, if 1911 so, what practical suggestions are contained in them towards the abatement of the causes of the inordinately high death rate of Dublin; and, whether it is a fact that but one member of the Public Health Committee attended from the commencement of the proceedings (who occupied the chair), and that but two other members were present for a short time previous to close of conference?
§ SIR. MICHAEL HICKS-BEACHSir, I must first state that all the information I can give the hon. Member on the subject is derived from the Local Government Board, and that the Government are only connected with it through the general supervision exercised by the Local Government Board over sanitary matters in Ireland. I am informed that the meeting to which the hon. Member refers was convened on the 15th of March, and was a meeting of medical sanitary officers, attended by two members of the Public Health Committee, one of whom was in the chair; by Drs. Mapother and Cameron, the consulting sanitary officer and medical officer of health; and by 11 out of 14 medical sanitary officers. A lengthened discussion arose on the questions referred to the meeting, and at its close Dr. Mapother undertook, with the concurrence of the meeting, to draw up for the Public Health Committee a statement of what had passed, which he subsequently presented to the Committee. After the close of the meeting, five gentlemen who had attended it, after an informal discussion, adopted recommendations of the kind referred to in the hon. Member's Question; but, of course, those recommendations were not published, not having been adopted by the meeting itself. I am informed that since that time other reports have been received by the Public Health Committee, and I shall be happy to show the hon. Member their purport, though I cannot trespass on the time of the House by reading them.