§ Mr. ASTORasked the President of the Local Government Board whether either county councils or local sanitary authorities have any power to provide for lectures on matters relating to public health; and, if so, under what Statute or Statutes?
§ Mr. HERBERT SAMUELSection 60 (1) (b) of the National Insurance Act, 1911, provides that the insurance committee of a county or county borough may make such provision for the giving of lectures and the publication of information on questions relating to health as it thinks necessary or desirable, and Section 61 (3) of that Act empowers any local authority to subscribe such sums as it may think fit towards the general purposes of the insurance committee. Subject to this, I am not aware of any general statutary authority for county councils or sanitary authorities in England and Wales to provide lectures of the kind to which the hon. Member refers. I assume that his inquiry is not intended to relate to the powers of the local authorities as education authorities.