The Government has now formally accepted that the long-awaited Liberty Protection Safeguards cannot be implemented by the original dated of April 2022. This had been inevitable for some time given the need for a consultation period, return to Parliament and then a gap to allow organisations to prepare and adapt to the new regulations.
The announcement from the Department of Health and Social Care does not give a new implementation date given that the consultation is not ready to be launched yet. It is hoped that this will be in the New Year but has the understandable caveat that this is subject to what happens with Covid.
The update makes the valid point that it is very important to get these reforms right, but the ongoing delay will perhaps still be a source of frustration for those who have to work on a daily basis with a system that has long been recognised as inadequate and overly bureaucratic.