22 February 2007
In brief
The government suffered three defeats in the House of Lords over plans to detain mental health patients where they have not committed an offence. The Mental Health Bill contains powers for people with severe personality disorders to be detained if judged a threat to themselves or others. However, its passage through Parliament has been a rocky one. This week peers voted to reduce the criteria for detention; to ensure treatment can only be given if it is likely to help; and for a doctor to have the final say in any decision to renew a patient’s detention or community treatment order.
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