Bishop pays tribute to Lord Cockfield and his contribution to Nottingham

The Bishop of Southwell & Nottingham, the Rt Revd George Cassidy, recalled the contribution of the late Lord Cockfield, speaking in the House of Lords on Wednesday ( January 10th) - he noted his contributions to industry with the Boots Company and supporting research at Nottingham University. The Bishop also spoke in support of an amendment to the Mental Health Bill.  The full texts of his speeches are copied below:

The Lord Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham: My Lords, we have heard of a very distinguished career—indeed, of a man of five careers; the fifth career being in Europe—of a man of formidable intellectual ability, of a man of great personal energy and hard work and of a man with professional focus who never craved personal popularity. We on these Benches certainly want to associate ourselves with all that has been said in tribute to him today throughout this House.

As Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham, I shall pay tribute particularly to the role that he had in one of our great industries in the east Midlands: the Boots Company. He was first its finance director, then its managing director and then its chairman. He not only headed up a leading commercial company in our local and national life but was also heavily involved in the historic great works of philanthropy, benefaction and charity.

Arthur Cockfield also had a very active interest in the successful development of the University of Nottingham, which, as noble Lords will know, was founded on the philanthropy of Jesse Boot, the enterprising Nottingham chemist, who was later to become Baron Trent. Lord Cockfield served as a member of the university’s court of governors from 1967, which was a period of significant expansion. During that time, eight new halls of residence were constructed on campus, and research schools developed and flourished. The period led also to the establishment of a new medical school at the university, which has grown to be one of the world’s leading medical schools in human tissue development and research in cancer and the biosciences.

When he initially became a supporter of the university, it had two campuses; now it has seven, including one in Malaysia and one in China. So he was a key man at the right time for Nottingham. He actively believed the university motto, sapienta urbs conditur: a city built on wisdom.

The Lord Bishop of Southwell and Nottingham: We on these Benches are not just mere academic observers of legislation such as this. We care for parish clergy, who are on the frontline, working collaboratively with those in the healthcare professions, in giving co-operative care and treatment to those who are mentally disturbed and mentally ill. I welcome the concept of “impaired decision-making” as a more flexible criterion than “incapacity”. I note that it has widespread support in psychiatric circles as a useful addition to the conditions for compulsion.

My anxiety is that its operation could prevent timely assessment or treatment of people, whose condition posed dangers, because they were judged not to have reached the threshold of significant impairment. The answer to this appears to be that significant impairment is assessed partly in terms of the seriousness of the consequences of the impairment. I wonder if that gives a sufficiently clear and objective criterion. With that reservation, however—it is more of a question than an assertion—I support this amendment.