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Government has introduced legislation to put this proposal into effect from a date to be decided—
probably 1 st April, 1971.
Against this background of uncertainty the preparation of comprehensive plans for the future
development of the health services at present provided by the local authority presents many problems.
Your officers have felt, however, that forward plans should be prepared on the basis of the needs of
the community irrespective of which authority or which department will ultimately be responsible for
the actual services to be provided.
All these changes or proposed changes naturally have an unsettling effect on the members of the
staff, coming as they do so shortly after the wholesale reorganisation of local government in London
in 1965. With the passage of time there will undoubtedly be some recruitment difficulty because staff
will not be anxious to enter a service which is about to be radically altered; there is indeed already a
noticeable reluctance on the part of some staff to enter the local government service and this is to be
expected in the face of the coming changes in the organisation of the national health service.
Changes in some aspects are undoubtedly needed particularly since it is now some 22 years since
the national health service in its present form was set up. It is to be hoped however that the Government
will bear in mind the fact that the services are provided for the people and that every endeavour
should be made to ensure that they continue to be administered locally and on a sufficiently flexible
basis so that local needs may be given due weight where these conflict with centrally determined
policy.
Finally, my Lord Mayor, may I express to you and to all the members of the Council, and particularly
to the members of the former Health Committee and the new Social Services Committee, my
warmest thanks for the support and encouragement I have received during the past year. My thanks
are also due to the other Chief Officers and their staffs with whom the closest co-operation exists at
all levels; and especially to the members of my own staff for their loyal and conscientious help so
readily given at all times during the year.
J. H. BRISCOE-SMITH
Medical Officer of Health and
Principal School Medical Officer.
July, 1970