Member

Amendments 128B and 158 would introduce a new category of “authorised person” under Sections 135 and 136 of the Act respectively. These functions of the Mental Health Act can currently be carried out only by the police. The two amendments propose different lists of who could be considered an “authorised person” for the purposes of these sections. Under Section 135, the role of the police is to support mental health professionals to enter someone’s home, by force if necessary, with a warrant, where there are concerns about their mental health and then keep the person at home or take them to a place of safety. Extending the ability to health and social care professionals to enter someone’s home without their permission would be a major shift in their roles—the noble Baroness, Lady Watkins, alerted the Committee to that—and it would impact on relationships between patients and health and care staff.