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Mental Health Bill [HL]

I am immensely grateful for the authoritative support of the noble Lord, Lord Patel of Bradford, and the support of the noble Lord, Lord Bragg, my noble friend Lady Chalker, and the noble Baronesses, Lady Meacher, Lady Neuberger and Lady Barker. In my naivety, I had thought, along with the noble Baroness, Lady Neuberger, that this was not a major thing for the Government to concede. It appears all of a sudden that it is a major thing, despite the fact that in the 2004 draft Bill we had a proposal not so very different from it. Time and again, Ministers are giving us answers that are diametrically opposite to the position that is implicit, or indeed explicit, in the 2004 draft Bill. I am at a loss to know why. I really had hoped to be pushing at an open door with the amendment. It might have been a coincidence that we heard from the Minister about the cost implications in some detail. My suspicions are raised yet again that perhaps, in part, that lies behind the Government’s resistance to a number of our amendments.