Our place to talk – an independent website for supporters of the Liberal Democrat party in the UK.

The most-read independent website by and for Lib Dem supporters. Not paid for by trade unions or millionaires.

Advert

Tag Archives: lasting power of attorney

If you want to understand modern government, understand the Office of the Public Guardian

By Mark Pack | Tue 19th January 2010 - 11:20 am

The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) neatly encapsulates much of how modern government is run, its weaknesses and the problems our democratic systems face in trying to control or improve bureaucracy.

The Office of the Public Guardian was created for the best of reasons following the 2005 Mental Capacity Act in order to administer a new Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) process by which people can lay down what should happen to them and who can make decisions for them if they lose the ability to decide for themselves.

Giving people more and clear control over their own lives is what government should do. Moreover, the OPG is, in theory, an accountable public body with annual reports, performance standards laid down by the Ministry of Justice and its operations open to questioning in Parliament.

But the reality of how it works also reveals the dark side of modern government.

Continue reading »

Posted in Op-eds | Also tagged andrew selous, annette brooke, featured, ian taylor, mental capacity act, office of the public guardian, paul burstow and tom brake | 6 Comments

Most Read

Op-eds

A plea from a member – more ambition and less equine pacification please… (Nick Baird)
Will the real Green party that cared about people and planet please stand up? (Kobe Bibbon)
We need better conversations on AI and the environment (Josh Matthews)
How to spot a Racist (Ben Rich)
Councils must help music – so music can help their communities flourish (Charlie Clinton & Josh Matthews)

Advert

Recent Comments

John Studholme
I Agee with every word of the above. I used Tony’s manuals to achieve control of South Lakeland District Council and to get Tom Farron elected an MP. His me...
Jeff
David 9th Oct '26 - 10:13am: Some very useful food for thought for the party. Here's the next course... Well good folks of Br...
Nick Baird
The problem in 2019 was "Vote Lib Dem, Get Jeremy Corbyn", as was being illegally fly-posted around Cheltenham on polling day.......
David Wright
The problem in 2019 wasn't that we were going to "rejoin the EU if we won", but that we were going to do so without another referendum first, something we'd bee...
Sarah
I am glad to hear that Charlie and others are pushing Ed for change. He’s ignored the stagnant polls and the frustration among MPs for far too long. He’s be...