MP calls for UK wide free personal care Following the Scottish Executive's decision* to implement free personal care for the elderly in Scotland, local Lib Dem MP, Edward Davey is calling for long-term personal care costs to be made free UK wide. Liberal Democrats have stepped up their campaign to secure the full implementation of the recommendations of the Royal Commission on long-term care across the UK (see attached background briefing). Earlier this week, Liberal Democrat MPs took their campaign to the floor of the House of Commons by choosing this subject for their Opposition Debate to raise awareness of the issue in Parliament. Commenting on the campaign, Edward Davey said: "The Government and the Tory opposition’s plans are almost identical but both fail the fairness test. It is indefensible that dementia sufferers are forced to pay for personal care such as help with washing and bathing which patients in hospital get for free." "Charging for care on the basis of who provides the care and where rather than on what care is needed is a recipe for confusion." He added, "A hundred thousand sick and elderly people have lost their homes in order to pay for their care since Labour came to power. From my own casework, I know that residents in Kingston and Surbiton have been forced to sell their homes to pay for care." "It can be a heart breaking situation and these cases have made it clear to me that we need a UK wide care system which is fair and fit for all. "
*The decision in Scotland marks a reversal of previous Labour policy and is the direct result of Liberal Democrat pressure within the Scottish coalition. |
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