§ 2. Mr. William Hamiltonasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what provision exists for the detention of children with serious psychiatric disabilities; and whether there is a separate provision for boys and girls.
§ Mr. MillanAccommodation in which children could be detained under the provisions of the Mental Health (Scotland) Act, 1960, is available in more than a dozen mental and mental deficiency hospitals including two children's psychiatric units with special facilities for children of about 12 years of age and under. These units and hospitals cater for both boys and girls.
§ Mr. HamiltonIs my hon. Friend aware that that Answer will give a great deal of comfort to people in Scotland who must have been very disturbed by the case which occurred recently in Newcastle? Can he give an assurance that if there were a case like that in Scotland it would be adequately catered for?
§ Mr. MillanI am sorry to say that we have some quite young children necessarily detained at the moment. Although there are obvious difficulties in any case, we have, on the whole, provision in Scotland for these very unfortunate cases.