Oral Answers to Questions

Jeff Smith Excerpts

Monday 10th December 2018 Commons Chamber

[Paul Blomfield (Sheffield Central) (Lab)]

6. What assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the new grant funding for the delivery of adult social care announced in Budget 2018.

[Jeff Smith (Manchester, Withington) (Lab)]

21. What assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of the new grant funding for the delivery of adult social care announced in Budget 2018.

--- Later in debate ---

[Rishi Sunak]

The hon. Gentleman is absolutely right to highlight the valuable work that those carers do in our society, and that should be recognised. It is for individual local authorities to decide how best to support carers in their areas. As the Secretary of State previously said, £650 million of incremental funding for social care was announced in the Budget. That funding could be used to provide support in the way the hon. Gentleman suggests.

[Jeff Smith]

Councils are predicting that an additional £3.6 billion will be needed by 2025, just to maintain current levels of care. Does the Minister think that it is either sensible or economically sustainable that councils are having to use their dwindling reserves to deliver care to people? That is what many of them are doing and what many more will have to do.

[Rishi Sunak]

Speaking of reserves, reserves in the hon. Gentleman’s constituency and area have actually increased by 40% since 2011. Beyond funding, the delivery of social care is a function of joined-up thinking with the NHS. I was delighted to meet the chief officer for Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Partnership in Manchester recently, and I am glad that almost all local authorities agree that our better care fund has improved joint working between health and social care.