§ Mr. Leslie Huckfieldasked the Secretary of State for Social Services what access is permitted to his Department's records for tracing missing persons.
§ Sir K. JosephAccess to departmental records is limited to my officials. If the address of a missing person under 18 is known it will be given, on request, to the police or the parents. In the case of a missing adult, my Department is prepared to forward a letter, if an address is known, and to give assistance to the police if they are investigating a crime which is other than trivial. In maintenance and affiliation cases a missing man's address will, on request, be disclosed direct to the appropriate court.