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NATIONAL ASSISTANCE ACT, 1948 - SECTION 50 -BURIALS
Section 50 of the National Assistance Act, 1948 places upon a local authority the responsibility
of having buried or cremated the body of any person who has died in the area, or been found
dead in the area, in any case where it appears that no suitable arrangements for the disposal of
the body are otherwise likely to be made. Such cases are persons who die in poor circumstances
and with few exceptions have no known relatives.
Hospital Management Committees and Boards of Governors of Teaching Hospitals have
been asked by the Minister to exercise their powers to arrange and pay for the burial or cremation
of such persons dying in hospital. This does not apply to the two voluntary hospitals in the Borough
(the French Hospital, Shaftesbury Avenue, and the Italian Hospital, Queen Square).
During the year, 115 cases were dealt with, at a total cost of £1,665. 4s. 6d. The Council
is entitled to recover the cost from the estate of the deceased person and the total amount recovered
during the year in respect of burials was £1,339.1 1s. 6d. The cases came to the notice of the Health
Department from the following sources:-
Cofoner's Officer 25
Friends or relatives of deceased 34
Hospitals 56
NOISE ABATEMENT ACT, 1960
Under Section 1 of this Act, noise or vibration which would amount to a nuisance at Common
Law became a statutory nuisance which can be dealt with according to the procedure provided in
Part III of the Public Health Act, 1936. Apart from action by a local authority, three or more occupiers
of land or premises who are aggrieved by a noise or vibration nuisance may make a complaint to a
magistrate.
Section 2 of the Act deals with the use of loudspeakers in streets. A number of complaints
were received of noise nuisances under both of the above sections, but improvements were made
by persuasion and legal proceedings were not instituted in any case.
PET ANIMALS ACT, 1951
This Act requires that no person shall keep a pet shop unless licensed by a local authority.
Thirteen licences were in force in 1965 and no contravention was reported.
PHARMACY AND POISONS ACT, 1933
The following applications were received during 1965 for retention or entry in the Council's
list of persons entitled to sell poisons included in Part II of the poison list:*
Retentions 165
New entries 2
32