§ Order for Second Reading read.
§ SIR CHARLES ADDERLEY,in moving that the Bill be now read the second time, said, its object was to enact certain Amendments of the Public Health Act, 1872, which had been recommended in the Report of the Sanitary Commissioners. He had last year introduced a Bill for consolidating all the Sanitary Acts, but the Government having elaborated a Digest of those Acts for circulation amongst all the local authorities of the kingdom, it appeared best now to amend those Acts, and give a year's trial to the supplementary Acts of the last two Sessions before proceeding with the great work of consolidation. The Bill was divided into two parts. The first part of this Bill applied to "Nuisances," and in the first clause to the 10th the Nuisances Removal Act, 1863, was extended. The 8th clause directed the procedure in case of noxious trades, against all trades, without exemption, in which all practicable means were not used against creating nuisances. There were added to the definition of "nuisances," houses insufficiently supplied with water, or supplied with unwholesome water, ditches, drains, cesspools, &c., not properly cleansed or trapped, and the keeping of any animal in a manner injurious to human health. By the 7th clause the 13th section of the Act of 1860 was extended to nuisances on public as well as private premises, and the right of complaint was given to any inhabitant; and the 11th clause extended the use of hospitals to those outside a district. The second part collected other miscellaneous recommendations of the Sanitary Commission such as statistics of sickness as well as death, the formation of local hospitals the application of the Sanitary Act of 1866 to houses let in lodgings, the ventilation of sewers, the construction 1665 of watertight cesspools, the analyzing of drinking-water; and other provisions which were obvious omissions in the Acts for the protection of the public health. The hon. Member for East Suffolk (Mr. Corrance) had given Notice of opposition to this Bill before it was even printed, and therefore one might suppose irrespective of its contents or merits. By the terms of his subsequent Motion it appeared that he would prefer consolidating all the existing Acts before amending them. It appeared, however, desirable on the contrary to complete the Acts before their consolidation, and not to constitute offices and appoint salaried officers under the Acts of the last two Sessions without as speedily as possible defining all the duties attached to them.
§ Motion made and Question proposed, "That the Bill be now read a second time."—(Sir Charles Adderley.)
§
Amendment proposed,
To leave out from the word "That" to the end of the Question, in order to add the words "it is inexpedient to add to the duties at present imposed upon sanitary authorities constituted by the Act 1872, until their powers are better defined by a consolidation of the statutes, and appointments have been completed in conformity with the intention of the Act,"—(Mr. Corrance,)
—instead thereof.
§ Question proposed, "That the words proposed to be left out stand part of the Question."
§ MR. HIBBERTsaid, the Bill had the support of the Government, and contained clauses which were requisite to make more perfect the Act of last year. Under that Act 30 Officers of Health, and the same number of Inspectors of Nuisances, had been appointed, and daily applications were made for the appointment of Officers of Health and Inspectors of Nuisances. The local authorities in all parts of the country were most willing to carry into effect the Act of last year.
§ MR. COLLINSsaid, it was inexpedient to pass another Bill on this subject until the House had time to know how the Act of last year operated, and how it was administered. He believed that in many parts of the country it had not yet been brought into operation—
And it being a quarter of an hour before Six of the clock, the Debate stood adjourned till To-morrow.