HL Deb 25 March 1926 vol 63 cc818-24

Amendments reported (according to Order).

Clause 1:

Qualifications and disqualifications.

1.—(1) From and after the commencement of this Act no person shall be qualified to be appointed to be a coroner for a county (in this Act referred to as "a county coroner") or a coroner of a borough (in this Act referred to as "a borough coroner"), or a deputy or assistant deputy to a county or borough coroner, unless he is a barrister, solicitor, or legally qualified medical practitioner, of not less than five years standing in his profession:

Provided that no person who at the commencement of this Act is, and for a period of not less than five years has been, a franchise coroner or a deputy to a county coroner or to a borough coroner shall by reason of the foregoing provision be disqualified from being appointed to be a county or borough coroner.

(2) A person shall, so long as he is an alderman or councillor of a county or borough and for six months after he ceases to be an alderman or councillor thereof, be disqualified for being a coroner appointed by the council of that county or borough or by a joint committee of which any of the members are appointed by that council.

(3) A person shall, so long as he is coroner for a county or coroner of a borough, he disqualified for being elected to be and for being an alderman or councillor of that county or borough.

THE LORD CHANCELLOR moved to add to subsection (2) the words "and for being a deputy of a coroner so appointed." The noble and learned Viscount said: My Lords, I have a series of Amendments to this Bill which are mainly of a formal character. I will say only a few words about each. This Amendment brings into the text of the Bill a provision already existing in Section 1 (1) of the Coroners Act, 1892, disqualifying an alderman or councillor from being a deputy to the coroner appointed by his council, and this entails a consequential Amendment in the Schedule.

Amendment moved— Page 2, line 3, after ("council") insert ("and for being a deputy of a coroner so appointed").—(The Lord Chancellor.)

On Question, Amendment agreed to.

THE LORD CHANCELLOR moved, in subsection (3), after "borough," to insert "or a deputy of such coroner." The noble and learned Viscount said: My Lords, this Amendment extends to a coroner's deputy the disqualification for the office of alderman or councillor of the council appointing the coroner which already attaches to the coroner himself. I think it is a desirable Amendment.

Amendment moved— Page 2, line 5, after ("borough") insert ("or a deputy of such coroner").—(The Lord Chancellor.)

On Question, Amendment agreed to.

Clause 8:

Expenses of local authorities upon salaries and pensions.

8. All expenses incurred under this Act by a council upon the salary or pension payable in respect of a county coroner shall be defrayed as expenses for general county purposes, and all expenses so incurred upon the salary or pension payable in respect of a borough coroner shall he defrayed out of the borough fund.

THE LORD CHANCELLOR moved to leave out "general" and insert "special." The noble and learned Viscount said: My Lords, this Amendment is necessary in order to prevent expenses connected with county coroners falling upon Quarter Sessions boroughs, who have to meet the expenses connected with their own coroners. That change clearly ought to be made.

Amendment moved— Page 6, line 6, leave out ("general") and insert ("special").—(The Lord Chancellor.)

On Question, Amendment agreed to.

THE LORD CHANCELLOR moved, after Clause 9, to insert the following new clause:—

Appointment of deputy by coroner of King's household.

"The Coroners Act, 1892 which relates to the appointment and powers of deputy coroners) shall apply with the necessary modifications to the coroner for the King's household as it applies to county and borough coroners, and in particular with the modifications that the appointment of a deputy to the coroner for the King's household shall be subject to the approval of the Lord Steward of the King's household and duplicates of such appointments shall be sent to and kept by him."

The noble and learned Viscount said: My Lords, the authorities of His Majesty's Household desire this provision because they doubt whether, under the law as it stands, the coroner of the King's Household has power to appoint a deputy. If he were ill, or if anything happened to him, that would be a very inconvenient state of things.

Amendment moved— Page 6, line 14, at end insert the said new clause.—(The Lord Chancellor.)

On Question, Amendment agreed to.

Clause 20:

Post-mortem examination without inquest.

20.—(1) Where a coroner is informed that the dead body of a person is lying within his jurisdiction and there is reasonable cause to suspect that the person has died a sudden death of which the cause is unknown, if the coroner is of opinion that a post-mortem examination may prove an inquest to be unnecessary he may direct any legally qualified medical practitioner whom, if an inquest were held, he would be entitled under Section twenty-one of the Coroners Act,1887, to summon as a medical witness, to make a post-mortem examination of the body of the deceased and to report the result thereof to him, and for the purposes of the examination the coroner and any person directed by him to make the examination shall have the like powers, authorities and immunities as if the examination were a post-moderm examination directed by the coroner at an inquest upon the body of the deceased.

THE LORD CHANCELLOR moved, in subsection (1), after "witness," to insert "or may request any other legally qualified medical practitioner." The noble and learned Viscount said: My Lords, the object of this and the Amendment that follows is to enable a coroner, instead of directing a local practitioner to perform the post mordem examination, to request any legally qualified practitioner to perform it. This may sometimes he the more convenient, course.

Amendment moved— Page 13, line 7, after ("witness") insert ("or may request any other legally qualified medical practitioner").—(The Lord Chancellor.)

On Question, Amendment agreed to.

Amendment moved— Page 13, line 10, after ("directed") insert ("or requested").—(The Lord Chancellor.)

On Question, Amendment, agreed to.

Clause 21:

Power of coroner to request specially qualified persons to make post-mortem and special examinations.

21.—(1) Without prejudice to the power of a coroner holding an inquest to direct a medical witness whom he may summon under section twenty-one of the Coroners Act, 1887, to make a post-mortem examination of the hotly of the deceased, the coroner may, at any time after he has decided to hold an inquest, request any legally qualified medical practitioner to make—

  1. (a) a post-mortem examination of the body of the deceased; or
  2. (b) a special examination by way of analysis, test or otherwise of such parts or contents of the body or such other substances or things as ought in the opinion of the coroner to be submitted to 822 analyses, tests or other special examination with a view to ascertaining how the deceased came by his death; or to make both such examinations, or may request any person whom he considers to possess special qualifications for conducting such a special examination as aforesaid (in this Act referred to as a "special examination") to make the special examination.

(2) Any person who consents to comply with the request of a coroner to make such a post-mortem examination or special examination as aforesaid may be summoned by the coroner as a witness, and may be asked to give evidence as to his opinion upon any matter arising out of the examination and as to how, in his opinion, the deceased came by his death.

(3) Section twenty-two of the Coroners Act, 1887 (which relates to fees payable to medical witnesses) shall not apply with respect to any person requested by the coroner under this section to make any examination, whether he is summoned as a witness or not.

(4) Where a person states upon oath before the coroner that in his belief the death of the deceased was caused partly or entirely by the improper or negligent treatment of a medical practitioner or other person, that medical practitioner or other person shall not be allowed to perform or assist at any post-mortem or special examination made for the purposes of the inquest, on the deceased.

THE LORD CHANCELLOR moved to leave out subsections (2) and (3), and to insert—

"(2) If any person who has made such a post-mortem or special examination as aforesaid is summoned by the coroner as a witness he may be asked to give evidence as to his opinion upon any matter arising out of the examination, and as to how in Iris opinion the deceased came by his death.

"(3) The provisions of this Act prescribing the fees payable to medical witnesses shall not apply with respect to any examination made at the request of the coroner under this section, but the fees payable in respect of any such examination shall be such as may be prescribed by the schedule of fees, allowances, and disbursements made by a local authority under section twenty-five of the Coroners Act, 1887, or by rules made by the Secretary of State under this Act."

The noble and learned Viscount said: My Lords, the new subsection (2) is redrafted so as to avoid casting any doubt upon the power of the coroner under the Common Law to summon any person he thinks fit. The clause seems to need that alteration. The new subsection (3) is redrafted so as not to legislate by reference to Section 22 of the Act of 1887, and, further, so as to provide regarding the precise fees to be paid.

Amendment moved— Clause 21, page 14, lines 10 to 21, leave out subsections (2) and (3) and insert the said new subsections.—(The Lord Chancellor.)

On Question, Amendment agreed to.

THE LORD CHANCELLOR moved, after Clause 21, to insert the following new clause:—

Fees to medical witnesses.

"The fees payable to a legally qualified medical practitioner who has made any post-mortem examination by the direction or at the request of a coroner, or who has attended an inquest in obedience to a summons of a coroner under the Coroners Act, 1887, shall (save as in this Act otherwise expressly provided) be as follows, that is to say:—

  1. (a) for attending to give evidence at any inquest whereat no post-mortem examination has been made by the practitioner, one guinea; and
  2. (b) for making a post-mortem examination of the body of the deceased and reporting the result thereof to the coroner without attending to give evidence at an inquest, one and a half guineas; and
  3. (c)for making a post-mortem examination of the body of the deceased (including the making of a report, if any, of the result thereof to the coroner) and for attending to give evidence at an inquest on the body, two guineas:

Provided that no fee or remuneration shall be paid to a medical practitioner for the purpose of a post-mortem examination instituted without the previous direction or request of the coroner.

The noble and learned Viscount said: My Lords, this new clause fixes the fees of medical witnesses, and the object is to make specific provision as to the amount of fees for a post mortem examination without an inquest under Clause 20 of the Bill, and secondly, to re-enact Section 22 of the Act of 1887, with various amendments and omissions, instead of leaving persons to gather the effect of that section and the present section by piecing the two together.

Amendment moved— Clause 21, page 14, line 29, at end, insert the said new clause.—(The Lord Chancellor.)

On Question, Amendment agreed to.

THE LORD CHANCELLOR moved, after Clause 29, to insert the following new clause:

"From and after the occurrence of the next vacancy in the office of coroner for the city of London the provisions of this Act and of any other enactment relating to the office of borough coroner or to borough coroners shall apply with respect to the city of London as if the common council were the local authority and as if the coroner for the city of London were a borough coroner, and any expenses of the common council under the said enactments shall be defrayed out of the general rate."

The noble and learned Viscount said: Your Lordships will remember that on the Motion of Lord Marshall of Chipstead a saving was inserted in the Bill for the coroner for the City of London, and it was quite agreed that if that were done the provisions of this Act should apply to the City of London coroner, otherwise ho would in time become the only coroner appointed by a local authority and yet be left out of some of the provisions of the ordinary law.

Amendment moved— Page 17, line 41, at end, insert the said new clause.—(The Lord Chancellor.)

On Question, Amendment agreed to.

THE LORD CHANCELLOR

The remaining Amendments are either purely drafting, or consequential.

Amendments moved—

Clause 30, page 13, line 6, leave out ("1860").

Second Schedule, page 21, leave out lines 3 to 12.

Third Schedule, page 23, line 26, leave out from ("intestines") to ("section") in line 33 and insert ("section twenty-two").

page 24, line 3, after ("one") insert ("in subsection (1) thereof the words not being an alderman or councillor of such council").—(The Lord Chancellor.)

On Question, Amendments agreed to.