Clause 11 - Lasting powers of attorney: restrictions
Mental Capacity Bill
3:00 pm
Mr David Lammy (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Constitutional Affairs; Tottenham, Labour)
I understand the desire behind the amendments. It is, of course, important to emphasise that incapacitated people should be given every help and encouragement to make their own decisions; that is part of the underlying ethos of the Bill, and I have said much about it already.
Clause 11(6)(a) already makes it clear that an attorney's authority to make decisions about someone's personal welfare extends only to circumstances in which the person lacks capacity. That paragraph was added in response to recommendations made by the Joint Committee.
Amendment No. 168 would limit an attorney's ability to make property and affairs decisions on the donor's behalf to times when the donor lacks capacity, unless the donor states otherwise on the LPA document. However, many people find it helpful to appoint an attorney to deal with their property and affairs while they still have capacity—a matter that we discussed this morning.
I have said how EPAs work at present. The difference under the Bill is that LPAs will have to be registered before they can be used for the first time, so the tracking process will be a lot better. A donor who wishes to limit the authority of the attorney to times when the donor lacks capacity can already do so, because the Bill makes provision for the attorney to specify any restrictions or conditions in the LPA document. The hon. Member for Daventry mentioned the roles of professionals earlier. In drawing up that document, many people will call on solicitors and professionals, who also have a duty of care to ensure that such things are done in the right way. On that basis, I hope that the hon. Gentleman will feel able to withdraw the amendment.