Extension of Services of Office of Public Guardian to Vulnerable Individuals

51 Mr Christopher de Souza asked the Minister for Social and Family Development whether the Office of the Public Guardian will consider extending its services to individuals who do have mental capacity yet may be pressured into making less than fully informed decisions or be taken advantage of, such as individuals with special needs.

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: The powers of intervention for the Public Guardian is confined, and rightly so, only to those meeting the required threshold under the Mental Capacity Act (MCA). It is not appropriate to vest excessive powers in the Public Guardian to override the ability of a person to make their own decisions. Persons with some special needs are not necessarily incapable of making decisions for themselves. For individuals with special needs, the same threshold under the MCA – that the person does not have the mental capacity to make certain decisions – must be met, before a deputy can be appointed.