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doubt left in the public's mind that they are not
being given all the facts of the case. Indeed, the
public should either be told quite clearly that the
whole subject of radiation is one which is best left
in the hands of those most competent to deal with it,
or they should be given the fullest possible information
and be allowed to judge for themselves.
Whether we like it or not, the problems of radiation
are with us, and are causing a good deal of perturbation
among those who take the trouble to think about
the problems raised by radiation. And, after all,
who does not fall within this category?
The fact that the Royal Commission for
Local Government in Greater London sat for many months
during 1959 and is expected to make its Report in the
Autumn of I960, may well affect the future of Public
Health in a District such as Friern Barnet. It
would be unwise to anticipate the contents of this
Report, but one must envisage the possibility that,
some time in the relatively near future, such matters
as mental health and the operation of the personal
health services might well come within the ambit of
the District Council. Until the Report is received,
however, it would certainly be injudicious to make any
such assumptions. The fact that, for the past 12
years, I have been Area Medical Officer for No. 2
Health Area under the Middlesex County Council, and
that this Area includes the District of Friern Barnet,
has certainly helped me in establishing the necessary
liaison between the environmental health services
undertaken by the Urban District Council and the
personal health services under the control of the
County Council. I also hope that this dual
ment has been of use to the Council in integrating
work which is of the greatest importance to the
residents of Friern Barnet.
I cannot close this introduction without
making special reference to a subject which has always
been very close to my heart, the matter, of harmonious
co-operation. In Friern Barnet, it has always been
my pleasure to think that the co-operation established
between the Public Health Department and other bodies
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