Mental Health Bill [HL]

I am extremely pleased to hear that. I hope he is therefore able to make his speech tomorrow night, as I have to replace him if he is not. I fear he will not, though. We wish him well in any event, and I am grateful to the noble Baroness. Important issues have been raised. The noble Baroness began with her concern about the number of people who may be deprived of their liberty. I do not have to remind the Committee of the importance of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 or of these provisions. Noble Lords know well the provisions’ history and that the purpose of the Act is to make sure that we enhance the quality of care and support for individuals. Included in that is a recognition that, in certain circumstances, what we have described as ““deprivation of liberty”” may be appropriate in order to keep them safe, enhance their care and look after them effectively and properly. It is on that basis that we have to address these provisions. Regarding the numbers, we have talked to psychiatrists who care for people with learning disabilities or dementia and to lawyers who are working in the field. We think that there would be about 1,000 to 5,000 authorisation cases each year. In the first year, we estimate, about 21,000 people will be assessed and about 5,000-plus authorisations will follow from that. That is an estimate by economists in the Department of Health, and it is based on the number of people who lack capacity and who need special protection. We have also looked at figures in one local authority to see how many of their clients may need an assessment. We hope and expect that, as more homes and hospitals become familiar with the meaning of ““deprivation of liberty”” and how to avoid it, the annual number of assessments will fall to about 5,000 by 2014-15, which will lead to about 1,250 authorisations. As I indicated, those are estimates based on information that we have, but I hope that they give noble Lords an indication of the kind of figures that, we think, we are describing. I accept, however, that we are moving into a field where those estimates, good as they may be, will none the less need to be tested. Those are the assumptions that have been made.