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Mental health bill 'too punitive' Mental health bill 'has balance'
(40 minutes later)
Ministers are facing a fight to get controversial new laws on detaining mentally ill people through Parliament. The government's Mental Health Bill strikes the "right balance" between patient safeguards and protecting the public, the health secretary has said.
Patricia Hewitt told the Commons it was "essential" to ensure discharged patients continued taking medication.
The bill, which will allow people to be held against their will even if they have not committed a crime, has been attacked by the Tories as "punitive".The bill, which will allow people to be held against their will even if they have not committed a crime, has been attacked by the Tories as "punitive".
They are joining forces with the Lib Dems to condemn the plan, which they said would stop sufferers seeking help. They and the Lib Dems say the plan would stop sufferers seeking help.
But ministers say the Mental Health Bill, being debated in the Commons, will help keep the public safe.
'Stigma''Stigma'
Ministers want to allow people with severe or violent personality disorders to be confined if they are judged to be a threat to themselves or others.
Ms Hewitt told the Commons: "Modern medicine and clinical practice has shifted the whole focus of care into the community and the law needs to follow.
So many people have died this last year, and over the last years, because no action has been taken Wendy RobinsonZito Trust
"The bill would enable a patient who is detained in hospital to be released under supervised community treatment, enabling some patients to be discharged into the community earlier than would otherwise have been the case."
This would be a "real benefit to themselves and often their carers as well", she added.
The government says amendments to the bill passed in the Lords in February should be overturned.The government says amendments to the bill passed in the Lords in February should be overturned.
Peers voted against the idea of compulsion, saying treatment should be given only if it was likely to help the patient.Peers voted against the idea of compulsion, saying treatment should be given only if it was likely to help the patient.
Shadow health minister Tim Loughton predicted that the controversial legislation could "ping pong" between the two chambers of Parliament. Shadow health secretary Andrew Lansley said the Tories would support the second reading of the bill but would be arguing about some of the controversial provisions.
So many people have died this last year, and over the last years, because no action has been taken Wendy RobinsonZito Trust Liberal Democrat Norman Lamb said government proposals meant a person facing compulsion lacked any right to advocacy - a right that a person accused of a crime is given.
He said of the bill: "This will only add to the stigma of mental health. It will drive people underground and prevent people from getting the help that they need."
The Tories argue that the plans will make it easier for people to be detained at a time when the NHS is being forced to close beds in mental health wards.
'Striking a balance'
The bill would allow people with severe or violent personality disorders to be confined if they were judged to be a threat to themselves or others.
Liberal Democrat Norman Lamb said this meant a person facing compulsion lacked any right to advocacy - a right that a person accused of a crime is given.
But Health Minister Rosie Winterton has said that the bill "strikes the right balance between getting treatment to those who need it, putting in place patient safeguards and minimising the risk to the public".
Paul Farmer, chief executive of mental health charity Mind, said the government had not learned the right lessons from a series of high-profile killings.
HAVE YOUR SAY These people need treatment not locking up like a common criminal Darren Spraggs, New Malden Send us your commentsHAVE YOUR SAY These people need treatment not locking up like a common criminal Darren Spraggs, New Malden Send us your comments
He added: "Countless inquiries into these homicides tell us that it's the services and access to services that makes the biggest difference - not changing the law."
But Wendy Robinson of the Zito Trust, whose daughter Georgina was killed in 1993 by a psychiatric patient, said she backed the stronger powers in the bill.
"So many people have died this last year, and over the last years, because no action has been taken," she said.
The government has been trying to overhaul mental health laws since 1998.The government has been trying to overhaul mental health laws since 1998.
It was spurred into action by the conviction of Michael Stone for the murders of Lin and Megan Russell.It was spurred into action by the conviction of Michael Stone for the murders of Lin and Megan Russell.
Stone was regarded as a dangerous psychopath but, because his condition was untreatable, he could not be held under mental health powers.Stone was regarded as a dangerous psychopath but, because his condition was untreatable, he could not be held under mental health powers.
Previous attempts to change the laws have been abandoned over concerns the government is too occupied with public safety, rather than the needs of patients.Previous attempts to change the laws have been abandoned over concerns the government is too occupied with public safety, rather than the needs of patients.
The bill would affect an estimated 14,000 of the 600,000 people who use mental health services each year.The bill would affect an estimated 14,000 of the 600,000 people who use mental health services each year.