Crisis point for social care

摘要

Health secretary Matt Hancock has defended the Government's failure to reform social care after his crunch meeting with the Prime Minister and chancellor was cancelled. Speaking in the aftermath of the unexplained cancellation, Mr Hancock refused to say why the summit - dubbed a 'do or die' meeting by his predecessor Jeremy Hunt - had been postponed. Instead, he blamed the pandemic for a failure to address the issue that Boris Johnson said was a priority when he arrived in Downing Street two years ago. Mr Hancock said this week: 'The Prime Minister has committed to delivering this plan before the end of the year and we're going to do that.' Managing director of chief executives' organisation Solace, Graeme McDonald, told The MJ: 'The social care debate is a simple - if politically challenging -spending decision dressed up as a policy debate and the question remains who pays for care and when? Sadly, like educational catch-up, the Treasury tail is wagging the Government dog at the moment.'