§ 2. Colonel DAYasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he is yet in a position to state whether the suggestion of the National Council of Women as to the employment of women at all police stations to supervise women prisoners is likely to be carried into effect?
§ The SECRETARY of STATE for the HOME DEPARTMENT (Sir William Joynson-Hicks)My inquiries will necessarily take some time, and I am not yet in a position to say how far the present arrangements will require to be modified. I may say that I received the deputation Only a few days ago.
§ Mr. BUCHANANWill the right hon. Gentleman, before taking steps to force local authorities to employ women police, take into consideration the fact that a large body of women themselves are against the employment of women police?
§ Sir W. JOYNSON-HICKSIf I may say so, that does not arise out of this question. The question relates to the employment of women at police stations, as to which I have already made a definite 2352 announcement. It is a different question from that of women police.
§ Miss WILKINSONReferring to the original question, may I ask if the right hon. Gentleman will bear in mind the statement of a very large number of representative bodies of women, the National Council of Women alone dissenting, asking that fully qualified women police under constabulary regulations should be employed, and not women merely employed on police duties but without the status of police officers?
§ Sir W. JOYNSON-HICKSMay I say that I received a very important deputation from numerous women's societies last week, and I think there is a little misapprehension as to the difference between women police and matrons at police stations. Matrons at police stations are not in the same category as women police.
§ Miss WILKINSONAll that I wanted to ask the right hon. Gentleman was whether he would bear in mind that the large mass of the women of this country would not be satisfied merely with the employment at police stations of women not on a police basis?
§ Sir W. JOYNSON-HICKSI should not like to be so ungallant as to say that they would never be satisfied; I would prefer to say that I will do my utmost to satisfy them.