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85
Report of the Medical Officer of Health.

Powers for the sanitary control of other premises upon which food is prepared for sale are conferred
upon sanitary authorities by section 8 of the London County Council (General Powers) Act of
1908.
Other
premises
where food is
prepared for
sale.
This section provides against contamination of the food by urinals, waterclosets, ashpits, etc.,
requires that the water supply shall be free from contamination by any watercloset, prohibits drain
inlets within the building and the deposit of refuse, beyond that which is required for the purposes
of the trade, and, moreover, requires due cleanliness to be observed in regard to the room or shop,
and the apparatus and utensils and persons employed in it. A considerable amount of work has been
done in London under these powers, varied conditions being dealt with in their administration. Thus
Dr. Sandilands reports that in Kensington "In 33 instances a sanitary convenience was found opening
directly into a place where food was deposited for sale :drain inlets in places where food was
stored were found and abolished on 62 of the premises visited. A peculiarly objectionable arrangement
was found in some of the butchers' shops, whereby waste water from the ice safe or cold storage
room was carried off by an untrapped pipe into a gully which was connected with the general drainage
system of the premises." The reports also show the need for improved cleanliness in restaurant and
eating house kitchens, a result which the exercise of these powers should do much to promote.

(a) Other than bakehouses, milkshops, slaughterhouses, and ice-cream premises. In some cases the figures
relate to restaurant-kitchens only.
(b) Including visits for the purpose of sampling under the Food and Drugs Act.