§ 12. Mr. Millanasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what investigation he has made into the incidence of rickets and other diet deficiency ailments and their relevance to the reduced consumption by children of welfare foods.
§ Mr. NobleThe investigation in Glasgow referred to in my Answer of 15th July to the hon. Member for West Fife (Mr. W. Hamilton), is one with which my medical advisers are in close touch, and it includes an examination of the diets of young children. It will, I hope, show to what extent the children concerned have received the Government's welfare foods.
§ Mr. MillanIs it not rather alarming that the figures for rickets are going up when we thought at one time that 1405 we had abolished this disease? Has the Secretary of State seen the findings of Dr. Arneil, of Glasgow University, which bring out that there is a connection between the increased incidence of rickets and the reduced consumption of welfare foods? Since the Minister of Health, in 1961, when the changes were made, said that the Government would keep a close watch on this matter and if necessary take action, what does the Secretary of State propose to do to increase the consumption of welfare foods to prevent the incidence of rickets from increasing?
§ Mr. NobleThe fact that rickets is increasing is deplorable at this stage of medical knowledge. I am grateful to Dr. Arneil and the local people who are helping him for carrying out this investigation, which he is doing on his own account. I am certain that when his investigations are complete we shall be able to see very much more clearly what is the exact position, but as I understand it—and this is only an early report—the problem is more one of education than of the availability of these welfare foods, because the great bulk of the people concerned are, I believe, in the category of those who get welfare foods for nothing if they want them.
§ Mr. W. HamiltonIs it not the case that these are the children of parents who, by and large, are on National Assistance? If that is the case, does it not point to the inadequacy of the National Assistance rate? Is this the reason why the Prime Minister said that he would no longer use the phrase "the affluent society"?
§ Mr. NobleI think that the hon. Member has it wrong, because if he believes, as I believe, that these are the children of people who are on the National Assistance rates, they get the welfare foods for nothing. This seems to me a separate point.
§ 26. Dr. Dickson Mabonasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps he is taking to eliminate clinical and latent rickets among Scottish children.
§ Mr. NobleThe elimination of rickets is achieved by proper feeding. The investigation in Glasgow referred to in my Answers of 15th July to the hon. 1406 Member for Fife, West (Mr. W. Hamilton) and of today to the hon. Member for Glasgow, Craigton (Mr. Millan) will, I hope, help to identify more closely points to which attention should be directed.
§ Dr. MabonDoes the right hon. Gentleman recall the pledges given by his predecessor and by a previous Minister of Health that if there were an emergence of either clinical or latent rickets—and the British Medical Association has since investigated the matter—the Government would review the question of vitamin prices? Will the Government, therefore, now look at the subsidies for vitamin foods and all welfare foods?
§ Mr. NobleThe hon. Gentleman was, I am sure, unavoidably, unable to be present when we were answering questions on this point earlier but, as I said then, the evidence which Dr. Arneil and his group are collecting will be considered by my Standing Medical Council as soon as we get it. At the moment, it does not look as though foods are the problem, but until Dr. Arneil has been able to analyse all his results I do not think that we can go much further.