Select committee: Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee
Conclusion 29
Second Report - Long-term funding of adult social care
Published 4 Aug 2022
Paragraph 128
Addressed to Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee Long-term funding of adult social care All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
Our broken care system is held up by unpaid carers doing vital work out of love and pride. The cost to them can be financial, physical, and emotional. The cost to our economy of carers leaving the workforce is over £3 billion each year—money that could be invested in adult social care. We recognise that some of the proposals in the White Paper will benefit carers, such as around technology and innovation. However, we think that £25 million over three years is a totally inadequate amount to allocate to initiatives to support carers, whose contribution to the UK economy is estimated by Carers UK at £132 billion a year. £25 million will do little to assure carers that their contribution is valued by the Government.
From: Housing, Communities and Local Government Committee, Second Report - Long-term funding of adult social care (HC 19), paragraph 128, 4 August 2022
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 15 June 2023 (deadline 4 October 2022).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government says it remains "fully committed" to the 10-year vision for adult social care and points to up to £7.5 billion of additional funding over two years, while declining some of the Committee's specific recommendations.
- On funding, it cites the Autumn Statement's "up to £7.5 billion" of additional funding over two years for adult social care and discharge, with up to £2.8 billion in 2023-24 and up to £4.7 billion in 2024-25.
- It says it "agree[s]" that market shaping should include a dedicated focus on outcomes-based commissioning, and it is investing in local authority commissioning capability.
- It declines to introduce statutory housing plan requirements ("We do not intend to introduce statutory requirements at this time") and has "no plans" for a review of carer's assessments or to lower visa salary thresholds.
- On a multi-year settlement, it says it "will aim to provide" one "wherever possible"; it will not proceed with the Review of Relative Needs and Resources during this Spending Review.