§ 3.12 p.m.
§ The Chairman of Committees (Lord Aberdare)My Lords, I beg to move that the Report of the Committee for Privileges on Parliamentary Privilege and the Mental Health Legislation be agreed to.
On 6th December last, on a Motion of the Leader of the House, the House referred to the committee the question of the effect on the privilege of peerage of the powers under the mental health legislation to detain persons suffering from mental disorder and asked the committee to recommend whether any action should be taken to clarify or amend the law. The committee has held three meetings and has carefully considered an opinion received from the noble and learned Lords, Lord Diplock, Lord Scarman and Lord Bridge of Harwich, and evidence received from the Attorney-General, the then Lord Advocate, Lord Mackay of Clashfern, and the Department of Health and Social Security.
Although the committee respectfully concur with the interpretation of the law favoured by the noble and learned Lords, having regard to the importance of parliamentary privilege, they have unanimously agreed on the two main recommendations of their report. The first is that although they make no recommendation for immediate legislation, they consider that for the avoidence of doubt on a future occasion when cognate legislation is introduced, the Government should consider the inclusion of a clause to provide expressly that Members of the House of Lords are liable to be detained under the mental health legislation in the same way as other citizens, and that in such circumstances they are disqualified from sitting or voting in the House of Lords or for receiving a Writ of Summons.
14 Secondly, they recommend no change in Standing Order No. 78, which governs the privilege of freedom from arrest for Members of your Lordships' House unless and until legislation has been enacted. My Lords, I beg to move.
Moved, That the Report of the Committee for Privileges on Parliamentary Privilege and the Mental Health Legislation (H.L. 254] be agreed to.—(Lord Aberdare.]
§ Viscount WhitelawMy Lords, I am sure that the House will be grateful to the committee for their report, which, speaking on behalf of this Government, I am happy to accept. Your Lordships will understand that I am in no position to commit our successors. Your Lordships will also, I am sure, in agreeing to this report wish to place on record our appreciation of the work done by the noble Lords who served on the committee.
§ Lord Cledwyn of PenrhosMy Lords, perhaps I may say, on behalf of my noble friends, that we accept the conclusions of the report in the same terms as the noble Viscount has just indicated. We endorse the tribute which he paid to noble Lords on the committee for the very careful and patient thought that they gave to this difficult matter.
§ Lord DiamondMy Lords, I rise on behalf of these Benches to express our appreciation and to concur.
§ On Question, Motion agreed to.