Public invited to shape new mental health law

The public are today invited to share their views over how the overarching mental health law influencing both England and Wales should change.

• The basics: The Mental Health Act 1983

An initial three month period of consultation has begun and there is plenty that is up for debate through the review of the Mental Health Act, which was commissioned by the Prime Minister in October.

As well as inappropriate detentions and inconsistent responses to the treatment of BAME individuals, the review will also look at the mental capacity act, compulsory treatment orders, the balance over risks, protection and rights, and the issue of whether the nearest blood relative currently has too much or too little responsibility in law.

Some changes will be "implemented pretty quickly" whereas other recommendations will establish the "direction that we should be going in over the next ten years,” Professor Simmon Wessely, who is leading the review, told Mental Health Today.

Anyone can submit evidence through writing to  MHActReviewEvidence@dh.gsi.gov.uk. Other means of contributing can be found online at this dedicated website or you can express your views through our Twitter polls on the Act - check our Twitter feed for details.

You can read the full interview with Professor Wessely, in which he describes the scope of making mental healthcare "less coercive", here.