Oral Answers to Questions

Kelvin Hopkins Excerpts

Monday 8th February 2016 Commons Chamber

[Brandon Lewis]

As is often the case, my hon. Friend raises a very good idea, and I will take it forward. I will be talking to the group that is going out and doing this kind of work and sharing best practice around the country. It is a good idea for local authorities to look at what others have done locally, and we will certainly do our best to take up his idea and to promote it further.

[Kelvin Hopkins (Luton North) (Lab)]

12. What recent assessment he has made of trends in the level of demand for social care services.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (Mr Marcus Jones)]

We have provided up to £3.5 billion of funding to meet the demographic pressures on social care. This is significantly more than the £2.9 billion that the Local Government Association estimated was needed.

[Kelvin Hopkins]

When will the Government accept that the problems of social care will be overcome only when there is a comprehensive and publicly provided system of social care for all, which is free at the point of need? I am talking about a national care service, exactly parallel to and integral with the national health service—a true public service free of privatisation.

[Mr Jones]

This Government are absolutely committed to the full integration of health and social care by 2020, and we will require all areas to have a clear plan for achieving that by 2017. The hon. Gentleman will also be interested to know that, by the end of the decade, the spending review does include more than £500 million for the disabled facilities grant, which is more than double the amount this year. That will fund around 85,000 home adaptations by that year, and is expected to prevent 8,500 people from needing to go into a care home by 2019-20.