The regulation and inspection of homes for the elderly or persons lacking full decision making capacity does not fall within the remit of the Department of Justice and Equality.
In respect of individuals requiring assisted decision making the proposed Assisted Decision - Making (Capacity) Bill will replace the Wards of Court system with a modern statutory framework to support persons who need assisted decision-making. The main proposals under development in the proposed Bill are to provide a legal framework to support persons with impaired decision-making capacity to better manage their personal welfare, property and financial affairs; change existing law on capacity from the current all or nothing status approach to a functional one, whereby decision-making capacity is assessed on an issue- and time-specific basis; provide that the Circuit Court will have jurisdiction to deal with determinations of capacity and to make orders consequent on such declarations, including the appointment of suitable persons authorised to take decisions on specified matters in support of the person lacking capacity; provide, in circumstances where it is not possible for a person to exercise their capacity even with support, that another person appointed by the Court may act as their representative; clarify the law for carers who take on responsibility for persons who lack capacity; establish an Office of Public Guardian, with supervisory powers to protect vulnerable persons; and subsume into the Bill the provisions in the Powers of Attorney Act 1996 on enduring powers in order to bring them into line with the general principles and safeguards in the Bill.
