View report page

118
powers as may be necessary to economically and efficiently protect both the
consumers and traders in the Borough should be opposed as contrary to public
welfare.
Your Committee express this opinion strongly because the Public Health
Committee of the London County Council think fit to express their view that
it is obviously undesirable that the Borough Councils should even have
concurrent powers with the County Council. The question at issue is not that
of visiting farmers in the country, but that of excluding impure and
unwholesome milk from the Boroughs and from the l ountry, and your
Committee think that it would be more desirable to compel the Borough
Councils to forthwith notify to the County Council whenever they exclude
impure milk, and that the County Council should be empowered to take action
in regard to the whole of London when two or more Boroughs make such
notification, and take such proceedings, in or out of London, as may be
necessary.
The views expressed by St. Pancras in regard to the proposals of the County
Council's Public Health Committee in reference to the milk supply were communicated
to the London Count}' Council.
The clauses of the London Count}' Council (General Powers) Bill, 1908,
referring to milk were withdrawn, the President of the Local Government
Board having intimated that he proposed to bring in a comprehensive Bill to
deal with the milk supply of the whole country.
TUBERCULOUS, PURULENT, AND DIRTY MILK, AND OTHER
UNWHOLESOME FOODS.
For a long time past it has been felt that the powers of local authorities are
inadequate to prevent the production and distribution of those unwholesome
foods which do not reveal their unfitness for human consumption to the sight
or smell of an inspector or medical officer, and of a magistrate, and which
consequently cannot be seized under the Public Health Acts, especially
tuberculous, purulent, and otherwise unwholesome milk. These foods can be
ascertained to be unfit for human consumption by processes employed in
bacteriological analysis, but there is 110 general legal procedure provided by
which samples of such foods can be procured for this purpose. If such foods
could be brought within the compass of the Sale of Food and Drugs Acts this
powerlessness of local authorities might be overcome.
By Section 6 of the Sale of Food and Drugs Act of 1875, it is provided that
"no person shall sell to the prejudice of the purchaser any article of food or
any drug which is not of the nature, substance, and quality of the article
demanded by such purchaser," if after these words the following words added
" or, in the case of food, any food which is diseased, unsound, or unwholesome, or
unfit for the food of man," such food would then be brought within the Acts.
Bv Section 10 of the Sale of Food and Drugs Act of 1875, the City of
London, the Metropolitan Boroughs, the County Councils, the County Boroughs,
and the Quarter Session Boroughs, must appoint one or more persons possessing
competent knowledge, skill, and experience, as analysts of all articles of food
and drugs sold within the City, County or Borough, and by Section 3 (5) of
the Act of 1899 any further analyst appointed must furnish such proof of
competency as may from time to time be required by regulation framed by the
Local Government Board.