39. Viscountess ASTORasked the Minister of Health how many local authorities empowered under the Maternity and Child Welfare Act of 1918 to set up maternity and child welfare centres have, up to the present, taken no action?
§ The PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY to the MINISTRY of HEALTH (Mr. Shakespeare)According to the latest information available to my right hon. Friend's Department, four of the 422 maternity and child welfare authorities in England and Wales have not yet set up maternity or child welfare centres, and 46 others who have provided welfare centres have not yet set up separate antenatal clinics. In some of these areas there are, however, voluntary clinics working in harmony with the local authorities, and in others of a rural character, where the provision of clinics is not practicable, arrangements are made by the local authorities for ante-natal supervision by general practitioners.
Viscountess ASTORCan my hon. Friend do anything to bring up to date those authorities which have not yet taken advantage of the Act of 1918, and make them set up clinics?
§ Mr. SHAKESPEAREThe Noble Lady will recall that we issued a very strong circular last October; we sent a reminder in November, and we have written to every one of these authorities. I trust that in the course of the next year many of them will set up clinics.
Viscountess ASTORWill my hon. Friend see that if they do not the central Government will do something?