"One and Other-Mental Health" by Feggy Art is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 2.0

The UK government has announced plans to reform mental health laws and how individuals are sectioned in England and Wales, according to Health Secretary Matt Hancock.

The recommendations are to be set out in a government White Paper and will be the first significant change the Mental Health Act has seen since 1983.

The major changes come after The Independent Review of the Mental Health Act in 2017 criticised the forty-year-old Mental Health Act for its discriminatory practices that see a disproportionate amount of black, ethnic and disabled individuals wrongly sectioned.

The review of the act – which allows individuals struggling with their mental health to be sectioned for their own safety – presented shocking statistics that people from black and ethnic minority backgrounds in the UK are more than four times more likely to be detained under the act than white people.

The proposed changes aim to empower patients to have more control over their treatment, implementing the right for the individual to choose a nominated person to look after their interests when they are unable to do so themselves, as well as introducing culturally appropriate advocates so that patients from all ethnic backgrounds can be adequately supported.

Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock said: “I want to ensure our health service works for all, yet the Mental Health Act is now 40 years old. We need to bring mental health laws into the 21st century.”

“This is a significant moment in how we support those with serious mental health issues, which will give people more autonomy over their care and will tackle disparities for all who access services, in particular for people from minority ethnic backgrounds.”

The government’s plans to reform the Mental Health Act have been met with positive conviction from many mental health advocates also.

CEO of charity Rethink Mental Illness, Mark Winstanley, responded to the announcement in an open letter: “Despite its faults, the Mental Health Act is a lifesaving piece of legislation. It protects people when they are very unwell. But now nearly 40 years old, it is desperately out of date and doesn’t reflect how a modern society thinks about mental illness.”

“Specifically, we're pleased to see a clear emphasis on improving outcomes for the disproportionately high number of Black people and people from other ethnic minorities who are detained under the Act.”

“We're also pleased with increased patient involvement in treatment plans, improved carer and family involvement, and greater legal weight for advance decision-making.”

The reforms will also ensure that autism or a learning disability cannot be a reason for detaining someone under the act.

The White Paper suggests that another psychiatric condition must be identified by a clinician to order a detention.

The National Autistic Society reacted to the news via twitter: “This is a huge step forward in the fight to stop autistic people being wrongly sectioned in mental health hospitals.”

A Mental Health Bill is to be published in 2022, following a consultation of the plans.