Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of assigning essential partners designation to family caregivers to enable care home visits to take place.

In December 2020, we rolled-out testing and personal protective equipment to care homes nationwide for use by visitors to enable more meaningful, indoor visits. Close-contact visits facilitated by testing are currently not advised during this period of national lockdown. We will review the guidance when the period of national lockdown ends and look to open up more opportunities for visiting when it is safe to do so.