HC Deb 27 July 1953 vol 518 c108W
Mr. Lewis

asked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he is aware that it is possible for any person, including juveniles, to purchase freely, without signature, rat poison containing yellow phosphorus with enough lethal effect to kill five people; and whether he will introduce regulations making it obligatory upon shopkeepers, chemists, etc., to obtain signatures in a specific poison book before the sale of such articles and to make the sale of such articles illegal to juveniles.

Sir D. Maxwell Fyfe

Rat poisons containing yellow phosphorus may be sold to the public by retail chemists only. I am asking the Poisons Board to consider whether their sale should be further controlled.