Adult Social Care: Funding

Lord Warner Excerpts

Thursday 16th March 2017 Lords Chamber

Asked by

[Lord Warner]

To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they expect to produce their proposals for a longer-term solution to the funding of adult social care.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department of Health (Lord O'Shaughnessy) (Con)]

My Lords, in order to meet the demographic challenges facing this country, the Government are committed to establishing a fairer and more sustainable system for funding adult social care. We will bring forward proposals in a Green Paper later this year.

[Lord Warner (CB)]

I thank the Minister for that Answer, but can he confirm that the review which is ongoing will examine the lessons from Japan and Germany, where populations and politicians have recognised that, as we live longer, we have to prepare earlier for funding our long-term care? Can he also assure the House that, in securing a new funding system for social care, regard will be paid to the impact of that on the long-term sustainability of the NHS?

[Lord O'Shaughnessy]

The noble Lord has done much work on the sustainability of social care, including his work on the Dilnot commission. He is quite right to point out that there are lessons to be learned from other countries, and certainly we will be learning them from Japan, Germany and elsewhere. He will know that the measures announced in the Budget are specifically designed not only to help adult social care but also to help the interface between the NHS and social care to provide exactly the kind of sustainability he is talking about.