BMJ  2004;329:634-635 (18 September), doi:10.1136/bmj.329.7467.634

Editorial

New mental health legislation

Scottish legislation, based on "care and treatment," has lessons to offer

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

Reform of mental health legislation in England and Wales has caused widespread concern.^{1 2} Initial recommendations, from an expert committee for progressive and ethical reform, mutated into an initial draft bill uniting all interested organisations in opposition.³ Despite suggestions that the bill would be shelved,⁴ a revised draft bill, apparently addressing the concerns expressed, has been published. Meanwhile Scotland has new legislation—the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003. Several organisations have pointed towards Scottish reform as an example of how things should be approached south of the border.³

The Mental Health (Scotland) Act 1984 is similar to the Mental Health Act 1983, both tracing origins to the Percy Report of 1957.⁵ In Scotland, in parallel with review in England and Wales, well received recommendations from an expert committee led to a positive response from government.^6-8 The new act received royal assent in April 2003 and starts in April . . . [Full text of this article]

(rajan.darjee@ed.ac.uk), Division of Psychiatry, Kennedy Tower, Royal Edinburgh Hospital, Edinburgh EH10 5HF

(John.Crichton@lpct.scot.nhs.uk), Division of Psychiatry, Kennedy Tower, Royal Edinburgh Hospital, Edinburgh EH10 5HF

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This article has been cited by other articles:

• Bennett, D. M., Mitchell, K. M. (2007). Is the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003 the least restrictive option?. Psychiatr. Bull. 31: 194-194 [Full text]  
• Crichton, J., Darjee, R. (2007). New mental health legislation. BMJ 334: 596-597 [Full text]  
• Thomson, L. D. G. (2005). The Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003: civil legislation. Psychiatr. Bull. 29: 381-384 [Abstract] [Full text]  

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