Powers of Attorney

(asked on 10th October 2014) - View Source

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what safeguards are in place to prevent misuse of funds when a (a) single and (b) joint power of attorney is obtained.


Answered by
 Portrait
Simon Hughes
This question was answered on 20th October 2014

The Government is committed to protecting elderly and vulnerable people, and to making sure that anyone responsible for abuse is dealt with appropriately.

The Public Guardian has power to investigate cases where concerns are raised about the actions of a person or persons acting under a registered power of attorney, and to apply to the Court to revoke the power of attorney where necessary to prevent abuse. The Public Guardian can also refer cases to health and care authorities, who can act under statutory safeguarding powers to protect an individual who may be at risk, and to the police if he suspects a criminal offence has been committed.

Anyone who suspects that someone acting under a registered power of attorney is abusing that position should report any suspicion of abuse immediately to the Office of the Public Guardian by:

Email OPG.Safeguardingunit@publicguardian.gsi.gov.uk. or

Telephone: 0300 456 0300

A power of attorney is a private arrangement where the donor chooses who they wish to appoint and therefore the Government feels that State intervention in this process should be limited. The Lasting Power of Attorney (LPA) application process has been designed so that anyone can complete and register an LPA without the need for professional advice, though with significant safeguards (such as the need for a certificate provider to confirm that the donor has capacity and is not under duress) to cut down on fraud and abuse.

LPAs also have to be registered prior to use, which is a change from previous Enduring Powers of Attorney which only had to be registered when the donor lost capacity. In the year 2013/14, the Office of the Public Guardian registered 311,000 powers of attorney.

Requiring individuals to attend court to swear an oath would place a significant strain on court resources (as there is often more than one attorney for each power) and is likely to mean that individuals will feel that they need legal advice to assist them, which would incur legal fees. There might also be an increase in the cost of registering a power to cover the Court cost, which may lead to people not making LPAs, and therefore not being able to make provision for the future.

Under sections 22 and 23 of the Mental Capacity Act, the Court of Protection has wide-ranging powers to decide on issues relating to the operation or validity of an LPA.

Reticulating Splines