Report of the Joint Committee on State Medicine of the British Medical and Social Science Associations, on the report of the Royal Sanitary Commission.

  • Joint Committee on State Medicine of the British Medical and Social Science Associations.
Date:
[1871]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Report of the Joint Committee on State Medicine of the British Medical and Social Science Associations, on the report of the Royal Sanitary Commission. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    I “functions, furnish a trustworthy basis for permanent legislation. That “as, sooner or later, recourse must be had in many places to inquiry “on the spot, in order to supplement the tabular returns, as well as to “test their accuracy, economy as well as efficiency demands that this “ course be adopted now.” 8. Such inquiry would, we believe, have proved the necessity for a wilier extension of administrative areas, as health districts, and for a more complete combination of the various functions of local govern- ment within those areas. 9. We observe that the Commission proposes to preserve and con- firm, nay, even to augment the number of, existing local board districts, under what are called “ urban” authorities; the minimum population of these districts being fixed at 3,000. Now, it is well known that petty elective authorities in small separate districts are apt to obstruct rather than forward sanitary improvement, and that for the most part they render any uniform and efficient system of administration almost impossible. This fact would, we believe, have been established indis- putably by proper local inquiry. We had hoped, therefore, that all such local board districts would be combined and included in wider jurisdictions—even although the districts themselves, having been legally formed, might be separately represented in a larger board. 10. Estimating the number of local board districts from Parliament- ary returns—and observing that an unreported, though considerable number of special drainage districts (some of which are little more than villages) are, according to the recommendations of the Commission, to be converted into local board districts—allowing also for the proposed creation of new districts of the same kind (see Report, p. 26)—we may reasonably conclude that the surface of the country would soon be, if it be not now, honeycombed by not fewer than 1,000 limited and isolated areas under “urban” authorities. Against suck a project of local govern- ment, we strongly and earnestly protest. 11. We acknowledge that the Commission proposes to facilitate the combination of districts for limited purposes ; but neither are the prin- ciples and terms of such combination (or joint action) defined in the Re- port, nor is its general necessity enforced; while its adoption is to be merely permissive, and left to the determination of either local or central authorities. 12. Whatever may be the nature of the district, or the extent and population of area which, on mature deliberation, shall appear to be the most desirable for purposes of local sanitary administration—and Wider adminis- trative areas than local board dis- tricts necessary. Multiplication of special drainage districts objec- tionable. Combination of all the districts and authorities in the wider area necessary.