Emergency law to clarify Mental Health Act irregularity

The Department of Health has announced that it will be taking immediate action to retrospectively correct a problematic irregularity in the application of the Mental Health Act 1983.

It had been found that the North East, Yorkshire and Humber, West Midlands and East Midlands strategic health authorities have been approving doctors to work under the act in a potentially improper fashion.

The organisations used mental health trusts to carry out the validation and approval process for them without asking for decisions to be referred back to them for final confirmation.

These approvals and subsequent medical assessments made by these doctors are not considered to be under any suspicion and have now been ratified through the proper channels.

Health secretary Jeremy Hunt said the emergency legislation is being implemented "for the avoidance of any remaining doubt and in the interests of the safety of patients themselves, as well as the potential concerns of their families and the staff who care for them".

This comes after Mr Hunt announced earlier this week that more scrutiny will be placed on the occurrence of serious patient safety events in the NHS as part of a wider drive to improve transparency.