HC Deb 06 May 1914 vol 62 cc411-4
Mr. WEDGWOOD

I beg to move, "That an humble Address be presented to His Majesty praying that the Provisional Regulations made by the Home Office under the Mental Deficiency Act, 1913, be annulled."

The Mental Deficiency Act was brought in two years running. During the first year it contained a Clause requiring the local authority which had to administer the Act to make what amounted to a black list of all the defectives within their area. That requirement was very strongly objected to both in Committee upstairs and elsewhere. It was regarded as undesirable that a black list or record of defectives in the country should be made. The objection was so strong and so well-founded that when the Bill was reintroduced in 1913 that provision was excluded, and power was taken instead for the local authority to make a list which I will describe to the House in the words of the Act, which were as follows:—

The local authority are hereby empowered that it shall be their duty to ascertain what persons within their area are defectives subject to be dealt with under this Act otherwise than under paragraph (a). The House will recollect that this Act of Parliament was recommended by the Government to the House on the ground that it did not apply to all defectives, that it was not an Act of Parliament which hunted out defectives, but only dealt with those who come otherwise within the meshes of the law, and that the ordinary defectives would not be dealt with by the Act. Consequently, the local authority was only given power to take particulars as to those defective who come within the provisions of the Act. Those who are within the provisions of the Act have to be not merely defective persons, but defective persons found neglected. You cannot make that return before they are neglected, nor can you make a list of those found guilty of any criminal offence until they are found guilty. You can make a list of those undergoing imprisonment and the habitual drunkards, but not those who are found in receipt of Poor Law relief giving birth to illegitimate children until they are so found. Therefore the powers of the local authority were severely restricted by the State, and they were only to make a list of those who came within the provisions of the Act as being already within the meshes of the law. We knew in getting that provision excluded we were acting directly contrary to the wishes of the Eugenists who brought the Bill for ward, but it was claimed by the Home Secretary—

Notice taken that forty Members were not present.

Mr. WEDGWOOD

(seated and covered): On a point of Order. May I ask you if I have not the opportunity of moving this Address now, whether I am deprived of my rights under the Mental Deficiency Act of moving this Address to the Throne? I desire to know from you whether these Regulations will become law if this opportunity of moving the Address is not given?

Mr. SPEAKER

I should like to refer more particularly to the Statute.

Mr. WEDGWOOD

May I read the passage?

Mr. SPEAKER

The probability is that the Statute fixes a particular date.

Mr. WEDGWOOD

It fixes thirty days on which the House has been sitting. Those thirty days expire to-morrow.

Mr. SPEAKER

The hon. Member's only chance then would appear to be to-night.

Mr. WEDGWOOD

In that case, as we can always be counted out, I presume that this provision in the Act to give the House an opportunity of preventing the regulations becoming law is a farce.

Mr. SPEAKER

I should not like to say that anything the House does is a farce. It depends upon how much interest is taken in the matter.

House counted, and forty Members not being present— The House was adjourned at Seventeen minutes after Eleven o'clock, until to-morrow (Thursday).