The co-Chairs of the Care and Support Alliance, Caroline Abrahams, Charity Director at Age UK, Emily Holzhausen, Director of Policy and Public Affairs at Carers UK and Oonagh Smyth, Director of Strategy and Influence at Mencap, said:

“Whilst the Care & Support Alliance welcomes the new Prime Minister’s prioritisation of social care in his domestic agenda, the proposals we have seen trailed in today’s Sun fall far short of what is needed.

The Prime Minister should move quickly to restore confidence in the sector and amongst the public that social care will be a key priority for his government.  Instead of proposing a private insurance scheme, which all the evidence suggests won’t work, we need an urgent injection of emergency, short-term funding to stabilise the system, followed by a plan to secure social care in the longer term.

Internationally, the leaders in this field like Germany and Japan operate schemes that cover their whole populations, giving everyone some help if they develop care needs. By definition no voluntary scheme can ever do this. Whatever the funding mechanism chosen, it has to be compulsory so that everyone is protected.

Any long term solutions must also factor in that working-age disabled adults do not have assets and life savings that can be used to fund their care. If whatever the Government proposes ignores their needs, as well as those of the millions of overstretched and unsupported family carers, it will not be remotely fit for purpose. More broadly, a voluntary scheme focused only on those who develop care needs in later life would essentially be more of the kicking-the-can-down-the-road that we’ve seen over the past two years.

The Prime Minister must show leadership and fix social care once and for all.”