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126
requirements necessary in many of these houses to put them
into a satisfactory condition of repair induced me to advise
the Committee that action should be taken under this Act in
preference to the Public Health Act. The powers under the
former Act had not, however, been previously used in this
Borough, and the Committee gave instructions to serve the
usual notices under the Public Health Act and reported their
action to the Council. The Council called for a joint report
from the Solicitor and the Medical Officer as to the best
method of dealing with similar nuisances in the future. The
joint report will be found on pages 245 to 253 in the Appendix.
Considerable difficulty, as was anticipated by me, was
experienced in getting the notices under the Public Health
Act complied with. The Health Committee, in consequence
of the delay in carrying out the Council's requirements, visited
the premises, and instructed me to write to the owner informing
him that unless the Public Health Act Statutory Notices
were complied with within a reasonable time proceedings
would be taken against him. Notwithstanding this, the work
was still carried out in a dilatory and unsatisfactory manner,
and the Solicitor was accordingly instructed to take proceedings.
The notices are now practically complied with, but
the work has not been done satisfactorily, and is not likely
to prove of a permanent character, so that the property will,
I have little doubt, be before long in as bad a condition as
before. It was for this reason I had advised the Committee to
proceed under the Housing Act, as an order under that Act
is not to be withdrawn until the premises concerned have been
put into proper order and condition to the satisfaction of the
Borough Council. I am glad to report that the Council
decided to make use of the powers conferred on them under
Part II., Section 32, of the Housing of the Working Classes
Act, 1890, in the future in similar cases as may from time to
time be brought to the notice of the Health Committee by the
Medical Officer of Health.
On the whole, the work done during the year in connection
with insanitary property, has been of a satisfactory