Mental Health Act 2007 - campaign update

Mental Health Act 2007

The Government's controversial Mental Health Bill finally became law in July and is now the Mental Health Act 2007.

You can view the changes the new Act makes to the Mental Health Act 1983 here (link to Mind's Legal department briefing)

You can view a carers' summary of the affects the new Act will have here

Mind's endurance and persistence over an eight year long campaign, together with that of the 75 other organisations of the Mental Health Alliance and individuals who lobbied their MPs and told their experience to the media and policy makers, made a difference.  The Act is a significant improvement on what the Government originally planned.

Thanks to everyone who participated over the years for all your help and support in this extremely important campaign. 

Although far from perfect, at least the Act now contains:

• principles to which professionals should adhere when using the Act, including respect for diversity and user involvement;
• a clause that ensures that compulsory treatment can only be used if its purpose is to alleviate or prevent a worsening of a mental health problem or its symptoms or manifestations;
• tighter controls on what conditions can be placed on someone who is compulsorily treated in the community;
• a right to an independent mental health advocate for anyone subject to the Act;
• measures to prevent children and young people being accommodated on adult wards;
• a clause to ensure 16 and 17 year olds' refusal of treatment cannot be overridden by their parents;
• a safeguard allowing people held in police cells for assessment to be moved to a more appropriate place of safety as soon as one is made available;
• new safeguards for patients receiving electroconvulsive therapy;
• a strengthening of the provisions in the Act's Code of Practice which means that professionals who do not follow it could face legal challenge.

Mind will continue to monitor closely the detail of implementation as it is developed and make the most of the opportunities available for further improvement to the way the law is interpreted by professionals.

Despite the improvements achieved the Act still represents a failure by the Government to produce humane and progressive mental health legislation.

In particular the opportunity has been missed to tackle fundamental problems - to fight race inequalities, to give people with mental health problems the same rights to make choices as people with physical health problems, and to ensure that people can get help when they ask for it.

If you would like more information about the new Mental Health Act visit our Policy pages about the Act or contact Anna Bird on 020 8215 2275 or via a.bird@mind.org.uk