Mental Health Bill [HL]

My Lords, this is precisely the point that I was worried about. One can see in the code—having regard, for example, to patients’ past and present views, and the views of relatives and friends—that there is very real potential for a clash. That is why I asked my noble friend simply to have the lawyers crawl over this provision very carefully before the Bill becomes an Act. Otherwise, a number of professionals who speak in this House may find themselves before a court of law and rather regretting the way in which they voted and spoke in this debate.