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Mental Health Bill [Lords]

You always say that before you call me, Mr. Deputy Speaker, and you do so with great wisdom. I shall, however, be immensely brief. Although I suspect that the amendment will pushed to a vote, I will not vote with the hon. Member for East Worthing and Shoreham (Tim Loughton), and I simply want to explain why. It is not that I believe that homosexuality is a mental disorder; that we should detain people for their cultural, religious or political beliefs; or that we should detain people because of their likely commission of illegal or disorderly acts. It is simply because the amendment as drafted is complex, in that it involves a triple negative. There have not been many challenges since 1983, because the exceptions were unnecessary in the 1983 Act and are unnecessary today. I do not believe that any of these things is a mental disorder and, therefore, it is patronising to put on the face of the Bill that we consider them not to be mental disorders. Finally, the liberty of people is already guaranteed by the four tests that have to be met before anybody could be considered for detention under the mental health legislation.