Member

I turn finally to Amendment 63. This would significantly change the tribunal’s role, which focuses currently on reviewing detention, not treatment decisions. The previous Administration consulted on a similar recommendation from the independent review, and noble Lords may recall that serious concerns were raised. The tribunal is not designed to deal with complex treatment disputes, which need specialist input and established therapeutic relationships between the patient and clinician. However, the emphasis on therapeutic benefit in the revised detention criteria will see that the tribunal pays particular attention to the patient’s care and treatment and whether it is proving effective, as part of discharge decisions. For these reasons, I hope that noble Lords will not press their amendments.