Mental Health Bill [ Lords ] (Ninth sitting)

Debate between Gregory Stafford and Zöe Franklin

Committee stage
Tuesday 24th June 2025 Public Bill Committees

[Zöe Franklin]

I beg to move, That the clause be read a Second time.

The new clause would introduce a dedicated veterans’ mental health oversight officer, recognising that those who serve or have served in the UK or Commonwealth armed forces face distinct mental health challenges that are not always adequately met by the current system. Far too many veterans experience post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety or substance misuse that, sadly, is linked to their service. Yet they are often treated within a system that does not fully take account of those experiences, and they are sometimes detained under the Mental Health Act without the benefit of trauma-informed, veteran-specific pathways of care.

New clause 9 seeks to change that. It would create an independent officer, tasked with monitoring the use of the Mental Health Act in relation to veterans, advocating for tailored assessment and care linked to veterans’ service history, promoting alternatives to detention where appropriate, particularly through veteran-specific services, and reporting annually to Parliament on outcomes including rates of detention, recidivism and systemic barriers. It is not just about oversight; it is about respect and responsibility.

[Gregory Stafford (Farnham and Bordon) (Con)]

I am very sympathetic to the hon. Member’s concerns, but how does she see the new clause fitting in with the already established armed forces covenant, which protects and promotes healthcare for veterans across the country?

[Zöe Franklin]

I see them as absolutely sympathetic to each other and working in concert. We want to ensure that veterans have specific, tailored mental health care, as is outlined in the Bill. That is why the new clause would ensure that veterans’ unique needs are not just recognised but actively addressed. It is a practical and overdue step to improve care, safeguard rights and deliver the joined-up service that veterans deserve. After all, they give so much to our nation through their service.

I hope that the Minister will support the new clause, but if he does not, I hope that he will outline for the Committee how the Government will ensure that the aims of the new clause will be addressed through the Bill and its accompanying documents as they stand.

Mental Health Bill [ Lords ] (First sitting)

Debate between Gregory Stafford and Zöe Franklin

Committee stage
Tuesday 10th June 2025 Public Bill Committees

[Zöe Franklin (Guildford) (LD)]

I rise to speak to amendments 2 and 5, which, in summary, would ensure that patients, named persons and independent mental health advocates would receive a copy of a care, education and treatment review meeting report for children and young people with autism or a learning disability.

Patients, along with all those tasked with helping to represent their wishes, should be able to see transparently what has been judged to be safe and appropriate care for them. Being given the opportunity to understand why their care or treatment is changing or remaining the same should be a basic right for patients, yet as it stands they are often frozen out of seeing that final report. Similarly, the nominated person, whether that is a friend, a mother, a sibling, or another parent, often has care of the patient; they know the whole person better than any NHS institution, and will often have a far fuller understanding of the patient’s history.

[Gregory Stafford]

I have a lot of sympathy with what the hon. Lady is trying to achieve with these amendments. My question is about how she would ensure, within the context of the provisions, that the patient’s confidentiality would be maintained where it needed to be.

[Zöe Franklin]

The hon. Member raises an interesting and pertinent point. There will always need to be balance when addressing the issues around patient confidentiality. I have seen from my own casework that when families who have been through mental health crises with their loved ones have not been involved in that process, unfortunately the crisis has lasted much longer and been more significant because those around them have been unable to support the individual. I do not have the answer, but we need to work collectively to find a way to strike that balance in order to address the needs of the patient.

[Gregory Stafford]

Moving on from the confidentiality point, if there is going to be sharing—again, I have a lot of sympathy with the amendments—how would the hon. Lady ensure that disagreements between family members and the patient are safeguarded against?

[Zöe Franklin]

That presents challenges, but again, I would refer back to my own casework, and I am sure there are Members on the Committee who will have had the same experience. There are examples across the UK where health boards and providers find ways to appropriately share information with families and other carers to get the best outcomes for patients. I simply ask that, when the Minister and colleagues in this space have those examples, they share them. I know that there are some areas where this is already done effectively, particularly in Scotland, and I seek to reference those examples.

My final point on amendments 2 and 5 is that we need to ensure that those around a patient are given the opportunity to raise concern or the alarm when part of the report does not meet the patient’s needs. We need to address the patient’s full needs, and to ensure that they are both reflected in the reports and met.