Oh What a Tangled Web They Weave When First They Practice to Deceive

e-mail: robin.williams6@virgin.net

Mental Health Legislation Team
Welsh Government
Cathays Park
Cardiff
CF10 3NQ 1st May 2012

Dear Sirs

Targetting the Weak and Vulnerable

I Refer to your document WG 14017 – a ‘consultation’ document entitled, ‘The Mental Health ( Secondary Mental Health Services ) ( Wales ) Order 2012, and its’ parent document ‘Mental Health (Wales) Measure 2010’.

The latter document was never put out for public consultation, thereby denying the public and patients the right to read this and to challenge any of the contents, if possible. The first document alleges to form a consultation, dated 21st December 2011, and with responses required by 14th March 2012. Unfortunately, this document was not circulated to the public, service users or any Mental Health Service group, their families, legal representatives or their Patient Advocates. Consequently, I am requesting copies of all responses to this consultation in order to assess it’s success or failure.

Neither document is written in Jargon-free, Plain English. From this, we deduce that neither document was intended to me made available to service users, and that neither document was meant to be understood. The intention of the government is clearly to withhold information about changes to legislation that will affect Health Services in Wales, and to deny any subsequent reader any understanding or meaning of the contents of these documents.

Clearly these documents form an undemocratic imposition of these two related pieces of quasi legislation. Therefore, I ( along with my colleagues ) am requesting a simple, understandable translation of both documents in order that they may be properly understood by those weak and vulnerable patients who are already affected by cuts and enforced changes to their services – these documents being merely the most recent examples.

The information requested in this letter constitutes a formal request under the Freedom of Information Act 2001.

Yours faithfully

Robin Williams – Advocate for the Mental Health Service users of Cardiff and the Vale of Glamorgan