Member

The noble Baroness, Lady Berridge, asked whether the change of criteria will be the main tool to reduce inequalities, and how that will work in practice. We will be working very carefully with the wider mental health system to support the effective implementation of the provisions of the Bill in order to reduce racial disparities in decision-making, because, after all, that is one of the key reasons for bringing forward the Bill. Certainly, updating the code of practice will help and will make a major contribution towards that. We want to make sure the code is absolutely clear on the actions that can be taken to avoid and address racial disparities in the application of what we hope will become the Act.