Question proposed, That the clause stand part of the Bill.

Clause 11 states what must happen where an adult or a carer refuses to have a needs or carer’s assessment. It is important to make the point that as long as a person has the capacity to do so, they should be free to choose whether their needs are assessed and whether to have their needs met after an assessment. We should respect the individual’s right to choose, and this clause retains that right.

There are some exceptions, which I will cover a little later. In the majority of situations, we do not expect this clause to apply. However, there may be some circumstances, such as where people who have been referred to the local authority from elsewhere do not agree that they need care and support. These people should have the right to refuse that assessment, which acts as the gateway to the care and support system, and the system should respect this right.

The clause also protects the interests of the local authority. Owing to the nature of care and support services, it would be extremely difficult and completely inappropriate to force care and support upon someone who did not wish to receive it. However, an adult who  has previously refused a needs assessment retains the right to approach the local authority at a later date and to request an assessment, even if they refused one earlier. Under these circumstances, the local authority is required to provide an assessment in the same way as it must for any other person.

As I mentioned earlier, there are some exclusions from this right of refusal, which I shall turn to next—

Jim Shannon (Strangford) (DUP) rose—

Grahame M. Morris rose—

I give way first to the right hon. Member for Strangford.

Just “honourable” will do. Is there a procedure in place for members of a family who are concerned for a relative to the extent that they fear that the person’s health would be detrimentally affected by not having an assessment and getting the help they need, even though the individual can make up their own mind?

I apologise for inappropriately promoting the hon. Gentleman. Where a family has concerns, it would be entirely appropriate for them to raise them with the local authority. Indeed, the Bill will create in statute adult safeguarding boards, so such concerns could be raised through that mechanism. I hope that addresses the issue the hon. Gentleman raises.

This was a major discussion point in the Joint Committee led by the right hon. Member for Sutton and Cheam. For illustrative purposes, could the Minister share with the Committee an example of the sort of situation where an individual might refuse such an assessment?

It is simply that some people regard themselves as very self-sufficient. They do not want to interact with the local authority. They have capacity and are steadfastly determined to do their own thing. In our society, they have the right to make that decision.

As I mentioned earlier, there are some exclusions to the right of refusal, which also helps to address the hon. Gentleman’s intervention. First, if the adult lacks capacity, the local authority must carry out the assessment if it believes that that would be in the adult’s best interests. Secondly, the local authority must carry out the assessment if the adult is experiencing, or is at risk of, abuse or neglect. These exclusions provide an important safety net to ensure that vulnerable members of society are fully assessed and, if necessary, provided with the appropriate care and support.

Clause 11 ordered to stand part of the Bill.