Clause 24 - Advance decisions to refuse treatment: general
Mental Capacity Bill
9:45 am
Mr Paul Holmes (Shadow Minister (Work and Pensions), Work & Pensions; Chesterfield, Liberal Democrat)
I shall speak to an amendment and a new clause that stand in my name and that of my hon. Friend the Member for Sutton and Cheam. The purpose of amendment No. 102 is straightforward and self-explanatory. It would provide an extra safeguard and takes a belt-and-braces approach to the witnessing of advance directives. Many people expressed the concern that if only one person witnesses an advance directive, there is potential for pressure to be put on the person making the directive—that the witness may lead that person in a certain direction.