asked the Minister of Education if she will consider introducing legislation to provide for special treatment of mentally defective children.

Provision for the special educational treatment of educationally sub-normal children rests on Section 33 of the Education Act, 1944, and on the Handicapped Pupils and School Health Service Regulations, 1945. No further legislation is necessary, but I shall shortly be issuing a circular, of which I will send the hon. Member a copy, asking local education authorities to consider as a matter of urgency the provision of additional boarding school accommodation for educationally sub-normal and maladjusted pupils.