Commission welcomes new powers on mental health advocacy

The Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland has welcomed new powers which will allow it to do more to protect the rights of people with mental ill health.

The Mental Health Bill, which was passed by the Scottish Parliament this week, requires local authorities and health boards to inform the Commission about how they have made sure that people with mental ill health or learning disability have access to independent advocacy.

The Bill also gives the Commission new responsibilities related to advance statements. These are documents written by a person with a mental health condition, and are a way of saying how they would like to be treated in future if they are ever unable to make decisions about their treatment. They allow people to influence their own care, but they are not used as often as they could be.

The Bill requires health boards to publicise advance statements, and notify the Commission about what they are doing.

Colin McKay (pictured), chief executive of the Mental Welfare Commission, said: “Independent advocacy and advance statements are both important safeguards that are there to help vulnerable people get their voices heard.

“We welcome these new powers because they mean that we will, for the first time, have a picture of what is happening across Scotland. We will publish that information, and we will share ideas for best practice so that different areas can learn from each other.

The Commission also welcomed the fact that a number of amendments it had asked for at earlier stages of the Bill were accepted by the Scottish Government, removing some of the provisions which might have reduced patients’ rights.

The Commission remains concerned about the shortage of mental health officers across Scotland. These specialist social workers have specific responsibilities to ensure that patients rights are protected, and the pressures on this service were highlighted during the Bill debates.

Colin McKay added: “We will continue to press the Government for a clear action plan to ensure that this service is not degraded.”