---

Mental Health Bill [HL]

In that case, I wonder whether we could get back to the point ably made by the noble Lord, Lord Owen, about mental capacity. The Government seem to be leading themselves up a path where they will find that the law in one area is inconsistent with the law in another. A patient with schizophrenia who is not objecting to his or her treatment may be detained under the Bournewood provisions only if they lack capacity, but detained under the Mental Health Act irrespective of capacity. In other words, the test that is deemed important to deprive a person of his liberty under one law is irrelevant in deciding whether to do so under another law.