Liberty Tactics: On the rise of ‘Deprivation of Liberty Safeguards’

The UK government estimates that 300,000 people in England and Wales are deprived of their liberty in connection with care arrangements made by others in their ‘best interests’ under the Mental Capacity Act 2005 (MCA). To put this number in perspective, this is more than three times the prison population in England and Wales. It is six times as many detentions for involuntary mental health treatment under the Mental Health Act 1983
(MHA). In this article, I explore the rise of 'social care detention' - a phenomenon that is linked to recognition and regulation of care arrangements in the community as a 'deprivation of liberty'. I show that this phenomenon is not unique to the UK; a growing number of countries are also recognising and regulating restrictive and supervisory social care living arrangements as a form of detention. I show how this has rarely resulted from deliberate government policy, but rather the pursue of 'liberty tactics' by activists, lawyers, ombudsmen and others concerned to 'call out' the violence that is sometimes embedded in social care, and subject it to better regulation or even abolition. I end with reflections and highlighting the challenges for reformists and abolitionists with the pursuit of liberty tactics.