§ Mr. Proctorasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will arrange for the central collection of statistics of those persons held under section 136 of the Mental Health Act 1959; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. MayhewStatistics of persons admitted to hospital under section 136 of the Mental Health Act 1959 are collected centrally. The police also record each occasion on which they exercise their power under section 136, but this information is not collected centrally. I undertook on 18 October—[Vol. 29, c.96.]—to give careful consideration to the possibility of issuing guidance to the police about records. This consideration is in progress, but no conclusion has yet been reached.