HC Deb 24 July 1959 vol 609 c1697

Lords Amendment: In page 9, line 40, after "home" insert: (excluding persons carrying on or employed in the home and their families)".

The Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Health (Mr. Richard Thompson)

I beg to move, That this House doth agree with the Lords in the said Amendment.

This Amendment goes with the three Lords Amendments in page 13, lines 4 and 39 and in page 14, line 1.

The Amendment makes clear that if a mentally disordered person, a subnormal person, is employed as a member of the staff at a mental nursing home or residential home, that need not affect the number of patients who may be kept in the accommodation approved for patients. The Amendment in page 13, line 39, allows mental welfare officers to visit mental nursing homes and residential homes under Clause 22. This may be necessary, for instance, if there is reason to believe that an employee who is mentally subnormal is not in proper care.

Question put and agreed to.

Subsequent Lords Amendments agreed to.

Lords Amendment: In page 14, line 1, leave out subsection (2).

Motion made, and Question proposed, That this House doth agree with the Lords in the said Amendment.

Mr. K. Robinson

So far as I can see, the elimination of Clause 22 (2) gives the mental welfare officer power to inspect both mental welfare homes and Part III accommodation. I rather understood from the explanation which the Parliamentary Secretary has just given that the whole purpose was to enable mental welfare officers to see members of the staffs at these places. It seems to me that the elimination of this subsection gives him much wider powers than that. Is my interpretation correct? It does not seem in any way to limit his powers of entry to seeing whether a member of the staff is mentally ill.

Question put and agreed to.

Subsequent Lords Amendments agreed to.