Liberty Protection Safeguards uncommenced seven years on, amid a reopened legal test

The Mental Capacity (Amendment) Act 2019 created the LPS to replace DoLS but has never been commenced. The DoLS backlog is reported at ~124,000 people, with over 332,000 applications in 2023/24 against an original forecast of 21,000 per year. DHSC announced (October 2025) a consultation on LPS in the first half of 2026; a Supreme Court judgment of 2 June 2026 reportedly overruled the Cheshire West 'acid test', changing the scope of deprivation of liberty and forcing a fresh policy decision. SCIE describes reform as stalled while the system unravels.

Hundreds of thousands of people lack timely legal authorisation of their confinement (a continuing Article 5 ECHR exposure) while councils hold unmeetable statutory duties. The Supreme Court ruling opens a rare window to redesign the framework before case law re-hardens.

A definitive government instrument: either commencement of a revised LPS following the 2026 consultation or replacement legislation built on the new Supreme Court test, with a funded DoLS backlog-clearance programme. DHSC and MoJ, informed by the Law Commission's original scheme, are the owners; Casey phase 1 could force the decision.

// State-led: Instrument: LPS commencement or replacement legislation on the new Supreme Court test, plus funded backlog clearance.

A June 2026 Supreme Court ruling and 2026 consultation reopen the framework amid a 124,000-person backlog and continuing Article 5 exposure, a rare window before case law re-hardens.