Offline: Do architects tell jokes?

Abstract

David Southall, the British paediatrician who has done so much to bring public attention to child maltreatment, was struck off the UK medical register by the General Medical Council (GMC) in 2007. He lost a subsequent appeal in May last year. The GMC concluded that Southall had a “deep-seated attitudinal problem.” Yes, he did. He fought with every fibre in his body to protect children from neglect and abuse. For that, he has been the victim of appalling vilification and injustice. But perhaps, at last, the tide is now turning in his favour. In 2007, the Attorney General, Lord Goldsmith, launched a review of Southall's criminal cases. The suspicion was that Southall had committed improprieties over the handling of case files. That review has exonerated him completely. Indeed, the report from the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children found that “in all cases [there] was evidence of child protection concerns being shared between Dr Southall's team, social care and the police through the appropriate forums.” An important foundation stone underpinning David Southall's reputation has been restored.