Tackling the crisis in social care must be the Prime Minister's top priority, whether that be Liz Truss or a successor. There is simply no more time to waste. The cost-of-living crisis, rising inflation and soaring energy bills are putting a huge strain on already stretched healthcare budgets, taking them to breaking point.
On the steps of Downing Street on the day of her appointment, the new Prime Minister promised to ‘put the health service on a firm footing’.
It is fair to say that the NHS and social care have been on anything but a firm footing in recent years. Five different Health Secretaries in four years certainly hasn’t helped, as neither did Boris Johnson saying he would ‘fix the crisis in social care for good’, without ever properly budgeting for how this was going to happen.
Our Prime Minster cannot make the same mistake. In her election campaign, Liz Truss pledged to divert £13 billion of NHS funding into social care, but crucially she is yet to reveal what impact these cuts will have on the NHS itself. We all know that we cannot fix the problems in the NHS without tackling the crisis in social care, but we cannot simply move precious funds around without consequence.
Getting social care back on its feet will hugely help the NHS at one end of the healthcare chain, but not if vital funds are simultaneously being drained out of the other.
This Government has shown it can find the money to tackle issues such as the Covid pandemic when it needs to. Social care needs to be properly funded so everyone who needs to can access vital social care services, and local authorities must have the funding to cope with soaring demand.
The Covid pandemic had a disproportionate impact on disabled people and their carers. Carers are already reporting exceptionally high levels of fatigue and stress, while disabled people and those who care for them are finding it even harder to access respite breaks or other essential support.
As we approach what will be an exceptionally tough winter for everyone, the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care cannot lose any more time in addressing this vital issue. They must commit to act on the Government’s promise to fix social care and provide a fully-funded, long-term plan to carry it out.
Now is the time for tough, decisive action, otherwise the consequences for so many could be devastating.
