HC Deb 16 May 1973 vol 856 cc344-5W
Sir R. Russell

asked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many patients there were in mental hospitals in England and Wales at the latest convenient date; and how many of these are incurable.

Sir K. Joseph

At the end of 1971 there were some 106,000 mentally ill and 62,000 mentally handicapped patients in hospitals in England and Wales. Mental illness usually responds to treatment and can often be "cured" in the sense of full or partial remission of the symptoms of the illness. Mental handicap cannot be "cured" in the same sense as an illness but the development of mentally handicapped people can often be improved by education, training and social care.