Baroness Barker (LD)

My Lords, I thank the Minister very much. I will not delay the Committee for very long, particularly given the time of night and that people are screaming to go home. However, there are two or three important points that we need to make. First, on community treatment orders, let us remember that it is compulsory treatment in the community. It happens in people’s own homes or wherever they live, but it is compulsory treatment. We are in danger of forgetting that. Secondly, the Minister said that the intention was to ensure that all detained patients have access to an advocate. Advocacy services are in the acute hospitals. They are not out in the community, yet the treatment which is happening in the community is compulsory treatment. Both of those two points flag up something that a lot of us mentioned at Second Reading. We have taken the 1983 Act and patched it up, and bolted things on and taken things off so many times that we are now at the point of squeezing stuff in and shoving it around, and we no longer have a basic legal framework which is fit for purpose. We are not talking about building seamless community and acute services which people pass through, get better and come out; we are now in Heath Robinson territory. That is why we are in danger of missing some tricks. The organisations that came up with my amendment are made up of the people who work, day in and day out, to try to build a proper service, as opposed to episodes of care. They are saying that people who are subject to compulsory treatment are not getting advocacy because of the way that the services are set up. I hope that the Minister might take that on board, but at this stage and time of night, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment.