Page 12 of 30 1980, pp. 545 et seq. (translation from the Swedish). The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Social Questions stated: "An important point of departure for the reform of the social services is that salient features in the handling of individual cases should be respect for liberty and the right of the individual to decide about his own life. The aim of the social services should be to co-operate with the client as far as possible, in order to make him take part in decisions as to the planning of treatment and make him co-operate actively in carrying it out. The social services should offer help and support, but not take over the individual’s responsibility for his own life. Personal initiative and responsibility must be made part of care and treatment. In this manner the social services may work more actively in a preventive way, and the opportunity to achieve more long-lasting results will be improved. This fundamental principle of the new legislation has been laid down in section 9 of the Social Services Bill, which stipulates that the measures taken by the Social Council in regard to any individual person should be conceived and carried out in co-operation with the person concerned. Consequently, all social services’ opportunities to use coercive measures on adults have been abolished. It is true that, regarding young people and children, the possibility of providing care outside their home contrary to the wishes of the young person or his parents is retained. In this field too, the reform means, however, that the right of the individual to be a party to those decisions that concern his own fate is more strongly stressed. The individual should be able to turn to the social services confidently and ask for help, without risking undesired effects in the form of various coercive measures. At the same time there is unanimity in considering that in certain cases society must be able to use coercive measures against an individual, whenever this is needed to avoid an immediate risk to somebody’s life or health." The Minister of Health and Social Affairs stated: "Section 1, second paragraph, point 1, indicates that one ground for measures on the part of society is that lack of care for a young person in his home or some other situation in his home constitutes a danger to his health or development. This rule refers to situations where the young person does not receive sufficient care in his home or is exposed to treatment in his home that means there is a danger to his mental or physical health or to his social development. By the word ‘home’ is to be understood the home of the parents, as well as any other home where the young person is residing permanently. Under this description come, inter alia, cases where the young person is subject to maltreatment in his home. Even a slight degree of maltreatment must be supposed to cause danger to the health or development of the young person. If, in such a case, the parents oppose such measures as the Social Council may consider necessary to assure the protection of the young person, application of the law may come into focus. In case there has been maltreatment of a more serious kind, the young person should as a matter of course be provided with care outside his home, at least for some time. As with the 1960 Act, this provision may also be applied in those instances where the parents intend to place the young person in an environment that will endanger his health or his development, or where they do not prevent him from being in such an environment. This section thus embraces all those situations where the child is being exposed to physical maltreatment or negligent care. This legislation may also be applicable if parents endanger the mental health of a child by their personal characteristics. If the child’s mental health or development is being endangered because of parental behaviour - for instance, by way of continuously recurring scenes at home owing to abuse of alcohol or narcotics - or because of the mental abnormality or state of the parents, it should be possible to provide care for the child under this Act. ... The Act is primarily aimed at enabling the social services to provide for the young person’s need of care. It is the current need of care, and what can be done at the moment and in the future to see to it that this need is met, that will govern the measures taken by the Social Council. As I have pointed out in my general statement concerning this Bill, this legislation can, however, not be used to provide for society’s need for protection. It is a different matter that, in those instances where a young person needs to be taken into care according to this Act, this measure will also have the effect of protecting society. The Social Council is to take appropriate measures as soon as it considers that a situation such as has been indicated in the second paragraph under points 1 and 2 arises. It may, for instance, have come to the knowledge of the Council that a child is being exposed to unsuitable treatment or even to actual danger at home. During an inquiry the situation may appear to be such that the child ought to be provided with care outside his home. The Council should then in the first place try to meet the need for care by reaching an understanding with the parents. In case the parents and the Council cannot reach an agreement as to the question of how the child should be cared for, the Council must turn to the County Administrative Court to obtain a decision on care under the Act, with an inherent authorisation permitting the Council to make decisions regarding the way in which the care should be implemented." http://cmiskp.echr.coe.int/tkp197/viewhbkm.asp?sessionId=60525252&skin=hudoc-en&a... 10/13/2010