Dr. Fiona Morrissey:

Dr. O'Mahony covered some of what I was going to say but it should be an automatic right and it is critical that advocacy be independent. Even the legal representation people have at mental health tribunals is not adequate. They should also have an automatic right to an independent advocate because the legal representation does not always represent people's wishes, views and preferences. Human rights training is critical. This is also a key support under the UN Convention on Rights of Persons with Disabilities to support people to make their decisions. We need to give people the support they need to enable them to make decisions for themselves. Independent advocacy is a key part of that.