The Mental Health (Northern Ireland) Order 1986

Removal to hospital of persons serving sentences of imprisonment, etc. N.I.

53.—(1) If in the case of a person serving a sentence of imprisonment, the Secretary of State is satisfied by written reports from at least two medical practitioners, one of whom is a medical practitioner appointed for the purposes of Part II by [F1 RQIA] ,—

(a) that the person is suffering from mental illness or severe mental impairment; and

(b) that the mental disorder from which the person is suffering is of a nature or degree which warrants his detention in hospital for medical treatment;

the Secretary of State may, if he is of opinion, having regard to the public interest and all the circumstances, that it is expedient to do so, by warrant direct that that person be admitted to hospital.

(2) A direction under this Article (in this Order referred to as a “transfer direction”) shall cease to have effect at the expiration of the period of 14 days beginning with the date on which it is given, unless within that period the person with respect to whom it was given has been received into hospital.

(3) A transfer direction with respect to any person shall have the same effect as a hospital order made in his case.

(4) A transfer direction shall specify the form or forms of mental disorder referred to in sub-paragraph (a) of paragraph (1) from which, upon the reports taken into account under that paragraph, the patient is found by the Secretary of State to be suffering; and no such direction shall be given unless the patient is described in each of those reports as suffering from the same form of mental disorder, whether or not he is also described in either of them as suffering from another form.

(5) References in this Part to a person serving a sentence of imprisonment include references—

(a) to a person detained in pursuance of any sentence or order for detention made by a court in criminal proceedings, including an order under[F2 Article 39 of the Criminal Justice (Children) (Northern Ireland) Order 1998 sending a child to a juvenile justice centre] but not including an order under any statutory provision to which Article 52 applies;

(b) to a person committed to custody for failure to comply with an order to enter into a recognizance to keep the peace or to be of good behaviour or both; and

(c) to a person committed by a court to a prison in default of payment of any sum adjudged to be paid on his conviction.

F1 Words in Order substituted (1.4.2009) by Health and Social Care (Reform) Act (Northern Ireland) 2009 (c. 1), ss. 32, 34(3), Sch. 6 para. 8(1) (subject to Sch. 6 para. 8(2)-(4)); S.R. 2009/114, art. 2

F2 1998 NI 9