§ Mr. Carter-Jonesasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will take steps to make information readily available to journalists and members of the public concerning the extent of disability in the United Kingdom in view of the International Year of Disabled People 1981; and if he will make a further statement.
Civil Servants in Socially Handicapped and Mental Health Divisions:— Under Secretary Assistant Secretary Principal SEO HEO EO CO CA Total 1.5.79 1½ 6 18½ 9 23½ 28 16½ 12 115 2.1.81 1½ 6 16 9 22 24 13 5 96½ Of these, those concerned with the services enquired about are shown below.
Others manage the special hospitals or deal with services for other vulnerable groups.
1. Services for the elderly Assistant Secretary Principal SEO HEO EO CO CA Total 1.5.79 1 4 1½ 3½ 6 3 3 22 2.1.81 1 3 1 2 3 1 1 12
2. Services for physically handicapped, deaf and blind people Assistant Secretary Principal SEO HEO EO CO CA Total 1.5.79 1 4 ½ 6½ 6 3 3 24 2.1.81 1 3 1 6 5 3 1 20 138W
3. Services for the mentally ill Assistant Secretary Principal SEO HEO EO CO CA Total 1.5.79 1 1½ 1 1½ 1 1½ 1 8½ 2.1.81 1 1½ 1 1½ 2 1½ — 8½
§ Mr. RossiThe information division in the Department is co-operating closely with the Voluntary Organisations Committee for the Year to ensure that such information as can be provided is made available.
§ Mr. Alfred Morrisasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he is satisfied that there are sufficient civil servants in his Department's socially handicapped and mental health divisions to provide a proper service to disabled members of the public during the International Year of Disabled People 1981; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. RossiIn general, the staff in these divisions do not provide a direct service to disabled members of the public but are concerned with the development of policy and other related work. I am satisfied that the numbers of staff in post are appropriate to the tasks they are asked to perform.
§ Mr. Alfred Morrisasked the Secretary of State for Social services if he will list the numbers of civil servants at each grade within his Department's socially handicapped and mental health divisions in May 1979 and the last date for which figures are available; and if he will indicate the numbers in each grade concerned primarily with services for the elderly, services for physically handicapped people generally, services for the deaf, services for the blind, services for people suffering from mental illness and services for the mentally handicapped.
§ Mr. RossiThe figures are as follows:
139W
4. Services for the mentally handicapped Assistant Secretary Principal SEO HEO EO CO CA Total 1.5.79 1 3 — 4 5 1 3 17 2.1.81 1 2 — 4 4 1 2 14 Individual members of staff are not as a rule designated to deal exclusively with services relating to physically handicapped blind or deaf people.
The staff enumerated above are concerned with the development of policy on services for the groups mentioned and with related work. A large number of professional and other staff in other parts of the Department are also concerned, continuously or from time to time, with various aspects of services for these groups.
§ Mr. Alfred Morrisasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if, for those cases where a local authority has decided not to provide a particular service under section 2 of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act 1970 at all, whatever the need for that service in the area, he requires each individual disabled person who needs that service to ask him to use his default powers, or if he is prepared to accept one application representative of disabled people as a whole in the locality; if he will take steps to transfer to himself any function which a local authority has, in contravention of that section, decided no longer to perform; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. RossiThe duty imposed by section 2 of the 1970 Act is to meet the needs of any person ordinarily resident in the area of the local authority for any of the kinds of assistance which are specified in the Act. Section 36 of the National Assistance Act 1948, under which a default order may be made, applies so far as the 1970 Act is concerned, to the failure to meet the needs for assistance of particular persons in particular cases. The question of whether a default order should be made arises, therefore, in relation to particular individuals and it would be a misuse of the Secretary of State's powers to deal with cases in any other way. My right hon. Friend will continue to give careful consideration to individual cases as they are brought to his attention.