Local Authorities and Civil Defence
| DOI | http://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9299.1952.tb02801.x |
| Author | Peter G. Richards |
| Date | 01 December 1952 |
| Published date | 01 December 1952 |
Local
Authorities
and
Civil Defence
By
PETER
G.
RICHARDS
Mr.
Richards
is
Lecturer in
Government
in
the
University
of
Southumpton.
HE
organisation of civil defence
T
has not been a popular topic
with students of public administra-
tion.
Other problems appear more
attractive.
An
investigation into one
of
the ways in which public author-
ities seek to promote the good life
must be a happier field than that of a
survey of measures taken to minimise
destruction and suffering
in
the
event of fiture hostilities. In
addition, action taken to promote the
good life frequently becomes
con-
tentious or arouses some degree of
enthusiasm
:
civil defence is felt to
be everywhere a distasteful necessity,
enthusiasm for which might seem to
show a capacity for morbid pessi-
mism.
The impact of modem war is
liable to affect every aspect of
our
complex economic and
social
organ-
isation,
and
civil defence precautions
must, therefore,
be
taken
in
in-
numerable directions. The general
principle applied
in
the distribution
of
functions
is
that
each public
authority shall undertake the range
of
ad
defence functions that
is
analogous to its
normal
peace-time
activities.
It
follows that most
government departments are affected
to
a greater or lesser degree, as well
as
all
local
authorities except the
parishes.
Thus,
in
addition to other
functions
that may be delegated to
aem, county districts are responsible,
inter
alia,
for sewerage, burial,
evacuation and billeting, rehousing
the homeless and the repair and
demolition
of
buildings, while the
protection of the public, the provision
of rest centres and ambulance work
is the task of the county authorities.
The phrase “protection of the
public” covers the operational side
of civil defence-the work of relief
and rescue immediately after attack
which is undertaken by the Civil
Defence Corps. County boroughs
perform both county and district
functions. Other specialised public
bodies, such as the regional hospital
boards and water undertakings, are
also concerned. In a short amde
I
shall not attempt to catalogue
all
the responsibilities of the many
agencies involved, but will concen-
trate
on
the
aspect of civil defence
work which concerns the public
most directly-the organisation
of
the
Civil
Defence
Corps
and the
work of the local authorities.
Local
Organisation
The Civil Defence
Corps
is
a
Crown service for which the Home
Secretary and the Secretary
of
State
for Scotland are responsible. Local
divisions
of
the
Corps
have been
formed by county councils,
county
boroughs, large burghs, metropolitan
boroughs and a few county districts.
These authorities enrol volunteers
for the
Corps
and arrange for their
general
and
specialised training.
At
present, volunteers are expected
only
to attend for training at
local
centres
for a few hours each month:
con-
ditions
in
war-time have not yet
been determined, but members
of
the
Corps
are expected to undertake
48
hours service
a
month in a war
emergency.
Local
government
servants will play a large part in
providing
the
leadership
of
the
32
1
To continue reading
Request your trial