§ 52 Lieut.-Colonel Sir RAYMOND GREENEasked the Prime Minister (1) whether, in arranging for relief works during the winter to give employment, he will consider the importance of improving the arrangements for sewage disposal in the upper reaches of the River Lee, the polluted condition of which has long been a serious menace to the- health of the people of Hackney;
(2) whether any attempt has been made to call the attention of the local authorities in Edmonton, Tottenham, Enfield, and other districts on the upper reaches of the River Lee, to the polluted condition in which the water of the Lee reaches Hackney; whether he can state if it is yet known which of these districts is responsible; what the remedy is;
(3) whether the improvements to the Enfield sewage disposal works, for which the scheme was approved last June, have been carried out; and, if not, whether there is any likelihood of their being finished during the winter?
§ Major BOYD-CARPENTERImprovements are required in the sewage works of Enfield and Edmonton, and my right hon. Friend is desirous of having the necessary work put in hand without delay. The Enfield Council have not-started the new works for which approval has been given, stating that they are conferring with Edmonton as regards a joint scheme. My right hon. Friend is pressing the council to proceed with the approved work.
§ Mr. BROADWill the Department consider the desirability of bringing the whole sewerage system of the Metropolitan area under one authority?
§ Major BOYD-CARPENTERI will convey that suggestion to my right hon. Friend.
§ 67. Major CADOGANasked the Minister of Labour, as representing the Ministry of Health, whether he is aware that the River Lee is in so insanitary a condition that the amenities of Hackney 1759 Marshes, where some thousands of East End workers seek recreation on Saturday afternoons, are seriously prejudiced; that the reason given for its present condition is that it has not been possible hitherto to decide which local authority is responsible; and whether he will institute inquiries with a view to having the River Lee cleansed, thus providing the unemployed with work which may be of some benefit to the neighbourhood?
§ Major BOYD-CARPENTERMy right hon. Friend is not aware that the conditions are such as seriously to prejudice the general amenities of Hackney Marshes, but he is in communication with local authorities with a view to securing improvements in their sewage works.