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the lesson to be drawn would appear to be obvious. Local authority and Ministry of
Health publicity expenditure is relatively small when compared with the many millions
of pounds spent by commercial concerns on glamour cigarette advertising through the
press, hoardings, and commercial television.
This Report also refers to the Advisory Smoking Centre with weekly evening
sessions set up to assist those who wish to be helped in giving up the smoking habit.
There were also well over 200 deaths from bronchitis. Nearly two-thirds of these
deaths were in males, mainly in the late middle and elderly age groups, and
investigations have shown that cigarette smoking is a major contributory factor in a
large number of bronchitis patients.
Clean Air
The work being carried out for the reduction of atmospheric pollution by the
declaration of further Smoke Control Areas under the Clean Air Act is proceeding at
a good pace. Four areas became subject to Smoke Control Orders during the year, and
the size of each area has with experience increased since the Clean Air Act became
operative. The field work under the Act is being carried out by two whole-time
Technical Assistants and two Public Health Inspectors who also have certain other
duties in addition, but between them they have made nearly 5,000 primary inspections
under the Act and nearly 700 domestic adaptations were completed during the year.
Nevertheless, in view of the large number of adaptations to be made in Islington, it
is not anticipated that the whole of the present borough will be a Smoke Control Area
until around 1970.
When the Clean Air Act came into force, it was not anticipated there would be
supply problems of suitable cokes for the majority of smokeless solid fuel appliances,
since coke is produced as a by-product in the manufacture of gas. Towards the
end of the year however, the Ministry of Fuel and Power intimated in a circular
that the future production of gas coke would be limited due to anticipated changes
when alternative sources of gas become available not dependent upon the treatment of
coal. This caused some concern for possible future supplies, but it is understood that
alternative solid smokeless fuels are likely to become increasingly available, and the
Minister recognised that a greater latitude for alternative forms of space heating and
for alternative appliances would have to be allowed. Whilst it would be a matter of
the greatest regret if there were delays in the declaration of smoke control areas, it
is also probable that adaptation costs will prove to be somewhat higher than in the
past, and the cost of suitable alternative solid fuels may also rise.
Solid fuel supplies were particularly difficult in the severe cold spell at the
beginning of the year, and solid fuel storage is a problem to which no satisfactory
answer has yet been found for many families living in multiple occupation houses or
even in purpose-built flats.
Housing
Section D of this Report contains information of the flats erected during the
year by the Borough Council, the London County Council and private enterprise, and also
mentions that since the end of the war, the Borough and County Council between them
have erected well over 7,000 flats. Nevertheless, the majority of Islington residents
must continue for many years to come to live in old houses which were not built for,
and have not yet been properly adapted to be lived in by several families. The Housing
Act 1961 included legislation intended to deal with this problem of houses in multiple
occupation and matters which might be dealt with in lettings of this type included
defects of natural and artificial lighting, ventilation, water supply, personal washing
facilities, space heating, sanitary conveniences, facilities for storing and preparing
food, and disposal of waste water. A pilot survey was undertaken by the Department to
obtain more information on this problem and on improvement possibilities both statutory
and informal. Over 400 flats were surveyed and over 300 informal notices were served.