Miss Rathboneasked the Minister of Health whether he will supply in the OFFICIAL REPORT a copy of an entry written in the visitors' book at the Park Prewett Mental Hospital by two Commissioners of the Board of Control in July, 1937, and of the entry as altered or amended by the Board some five months later, following an interview with a delegation from the committee of visitors of the hospital, there having been no inspection of the institution by the Board or any of its Commissioners in the interval?
§ Mr. BernaysIt is competent for the Board of Control to direct such amendments in, or omissions from, a Commissioner's entry as they may think proper, and the entry, as amended, is the official entry. This entry will shortly be published in the second part of the Twenty-Fourth Annual Report of the Board of Control. In this particular case, the amendments were limited to the omission of certain phrases which were open to misconstruction and did not convey the impression which the Commissioners intended to convey. The omissions were not alterations of substance and did not alter the general character of the entry.
Miss Rathboneasked the Minister of Health why no reply has been sent to a letter of 27th August from the mental specialist about whom he made a statement in his answer to a written question by the hon. Member for London University on 28th July last?
§ Mr. BernaysReplies were sent by my Department on the 3rd August and the 5th September to letters received from this gentleman bearing the dates of 27th July and 20th August, respectively. Further letters received from him bearing the dates 6th September and the 20th September did not appear to call for reply. There is no record in my Department of the receipt of any letter from this gentleman bearing the date mentioned in the question.