§ 17. Dr. Strossasked the Minister of Health how many cases of diphtheria were notified in England and Wales in 1953; and, of these, how many were in Staffordshire.
§ Mr. Iain MacleodThe number of cases of diphtheria notified in England and Wales in 1953 was 266; of these 80 were in Staffordshire.
§ Dr. StrossCould the right hon. Gentleman say which parts of Staffordshire are involved, in view of the fact that I have no knowledge that we have had any cases, or at any rate an appreciable number, in Stoke-on-Trent itself? What is the Minister doing to see that residual pockets of this kind are cleared up?
§ Mr. MacleodMy geography of Staffordshire is not terribly good. If I tell the hon. Member that the cases are mainly in the Coseley District Council area, he will know whether that is in the north or in the south—I am sorry that I do not. It is quite true that there was an important focal point of incidence in 1953. The 1954 figures are very much better, both for England and Wales and for Staffordshire, and I think that we can look forward to a considerable decrease.
§ Dr. SummerskillCan the right hon. Gentleman say whether there is a tendency throughout the country to disregard the importance of diphtheria immunisation?
§ Mr. MacleodIt varies very much indeed. If one looks into the details of 664 this particular question, they seem clearly to me convincing proof of the value of immunisation. I hope that everybody will notice how difficult it is to root out the focal point of disease once it has established itself, as it did in this case in Staffordshire.