§ Mr. Llewellynasked the Minister of Health whether he is satisfied that the Anatomy Act, 1832, and the Corneal Grafting Act, 1952, adequately cover bequests of bodies and eyes, respectively, by testators; whether he will publish statistics revealing the trend in such bequests; in how many cases bequests have been overridden by the relations of deceased persons; and what action is being taken to advertise the need of bodies for purposes of research and of eyes for restoring sight to the blind.
§ Mr. Iain MacleodI have no reason to doubt that these Acts provide adequate authority for the collection of bodies and of material for corneal grafts. The following table shows the number of bodies received yearly over a period of 10 years as a result of bequests. I have no figures for the number of eyes offered, nor for cases in which bequests, whether of bodies
—— Metropolitan Police District City of London 1953 1954 1953 1954 Proceedings for drunkenness … … 19,383 19,861 134 119 Convictions … … 18,842 19,320 134 116