§ Mr. W. THORNEasked the First Lord of the Admiralty, whether the written consent of parents or guardians has to be obtained before boys under the age of eighteen years can join the Royal Navy; whether all persons upon entering the service are vaccinated or re-vaccinated; whether, in the case of boys, the permission of parents or guardians for this operation to be carried out is asked; whether all persons are re-vaccinated on attaining the age of eighteen years; and would such re-vaccination at eighteen be insisted on in the case of a person who had suffered so severely as the result of his comparatively recent vaccination as to necessitate lengthy treatment in a naval hospital?
Mr. LAMBERTThe instructions are that the consent of parents or guardians is to be obtained to the entry of boys under the age of seventeen years. The absence of consent, however, would not invalidate an entry. All persons on joining the Royal Navy are vaccinated or re-vaccinated. In the case of boys, the permission of parents or guardians is not asked. The candidates themselves are required, before being accepted for final entry, to certify in writing that they are willing to be vaccinated or re-vaccinated. As regards the fourth part of the question, the regulation is that all persons who have not been re-vaccinated between their first entry into the Service and the age of eighteen should be re-vaccinated as soon as possible. In such a case as that mentioned by my hon. Friend, re-vaccination would be at the discretion of the medical officer.