View report page

79
I have already issued such certificate with respect to the Salvation Army
Shelter at No. 116, Middlesex Street.
Section 36 of the new Act gives increased powers of entry, and provides
that any person authorised by the local authority or the Board may enter
any house, premises or buildings at all reasonable times on giving twenty-four
hours' notice to the occupier and the owner (if the owner is known) of his
intention to do so. The authority must be in writing, and must state the
particular purpose for which the entry is authorised.
Section 43 prohibits the erection of back-to-back houses for the working
classes, and any such house commenced to be erected after the passing of the
Act shall be deemed to be unfit for human habitation, but nothing in this
section
(a) shall prevent the erection of a house containing several tenements
in which the tenements are placed back-to-back if the Medical Officer of
Health for the district certifies that the several tenements are so constructed
and arranged as to secure effective ventilation of all habitable
rooms in every tenement, or
(b) shall apply to houses abutting on any streets the plans whereof
have been approved by the local authority before the 1st day of May,
1909, in any borough or district in which, at the passing of this Act, any
local Act or bye-laws are in force permitting the erection of back-to-back
houses.
In conclusion, I desire to point out that the new Act is a striking example
of the inconvenience of legislation by reference.
The various Housing Acts should be consolidated. The Local Government
Board have issued Memoranda to those responsible for their administration,
but in spite of this they are difficult of interpretation even by a legal mind.