The Right Honourable Robert Buckland QC MP Lord Chancellor & Secretary of State for Justice Baroness Hamwee Chair of the Justice and Home Affairs Committee House of Lords SW1A 0PW 19 July 2021 Dear Sally, MODERNISING LASTING POWERS OF ATTORNEY I am writing to inform you and your Committee of the public consultation on modernising lasting powers of attorney that will be launched on 20 July 2021. A lasting power of attorney (LPA) is a legal tool that helps people plan for their future. It lets someone (the ‘donor’) choose people they trust (‘attorneys’) to support them and make decisions for them if they lose the mental capacity to make their own decisions in the future. The LPA was introduced by the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA), to replace the Enduring Power of Attorney. It aimed to balance the need to improve safeguards for the donor, with the need for it to be easy to make an LPA. The MCA also created the Office of the Public Guardian (OPG), an executive agency of the Ministry of Justice. OPG is responsible for registering LPAs. This must be done before an LPA can be used. The OPG is also responsible for taking action where there are concerns about an attorney’s use of the LPA. The aims of modernising lasting powers of attorney are to: • increase safeguards, especially for the donor • improve the process of making and registering an LPA for donors, attorneys and third parties • achieve sustainability for OPG whilst keeping LPAs as affordable as possible for all people in society The consultation, which you can access here: https://consult.justice.gov.uk/opg/modernising-lasting- powers-of-attorney, considers how best to achieve these aims and what amendments to primary legislation may be needed to facilitate change. We are seeking to gather views and evidence on a number of proposals that have been developed to modernise LPAs and will require changes to the MCA. The consultation will last for 12 weeks, during which time my officials will continue to carry out engagement through workshops and user research. It’s important that we gather evidence from a diverse range of people and organisations so please do respond directly to the consultation if you would like to do T 020 3334 3555 E: https://contact-moj.service.justice.gov.uk/ 102 Petty France F 0870 761 7753 London SW1H 9AJ so. Should you wish to discuss the consultation in more detail, my officials can be contacted at the following email address: [email protected]. Yours ever RT HON ROBERT BUCKLAND QC MP 2 .