purposes. According to the police, prostitutes in London alone
have soared to a record of more than 10,000. Convictions for
sexual offences exceed 5,000 a year, compared with the immediate
pre-war total of 2,300. The figures for male homosexual offences
have bounded even more sharply.

The extent of juvenile immorality in New Zealand may have been greatly
magnified abroad. If the good name of this Dominion has been sullied by
these reports, the Committee hopes that any damage may be repaired by
setting out the facts in their true perspective and by demonstrating
that we can, and will, do something in the interests of morality which
may also give a lead to other countries.




_II. Order of Reference and Procedure Followed_


On 23 July 1954 a Special Committee was appointed by the Government with
the following Order of Reference:

_To inquire into and to report upon conditions and influences that
tend to undermine standards of sexual morality of children and
adolescents in New Zealand, and the extent to which such
conditions and influences are operative, and to make
recommendations to the Government for positive action by both
public and private agencies, or otherwise._

The Committee held its first meeting on Tuesday, 27 July, to determine