£35k care cap plans 'revived'
There are reports that the Government has revived plans to limit the individual costs of elderly care to £35,000, despite the Health Secretary shelving the recommendations from the Dilnot report last month because of the cost of implementing it.
Latest ITV News reports
Government outlines plans to fund elderly care
Report: £35k elderly care cap plans revived
Tomorrow's Independent is reporting that the Government has revived plans to limit the individual costs of elderly care to £35,000.
It claims it will formally announce the policy in the Care and Support Bill in the autumn as part of the relaunch of the Coalition.
This is despite the Health Secretary Andrew Lansley shelving the recommendations from the Dilnot report last month because of the cost of implementing the cap.
Frustration at 'sticking plaster' over elderly care
– Julia Unwin, Joseph Rowntree FoundationWe are deeply frustrated that more progress has not been made and that the decision on how to pay for long-term care has been postponed yet again. The Secretary of State says this is a watershed moment. It is not. Extending current practice on deferred payments is entirely sensible, but it is also a sticking plaster.
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One family's story: The 'dreadful' choices of care
John and Clare Merry both have Alzheimer's. The money to pay for their care is running out and their family faces a difficult choice.
Read the full storyMinister answers questions on the elderly care White Paper
The Care Services Minister Paul Burstow answered questions from ITV News viewers and a group of pensioners in Deptford on the Government's White Paper on social care.
Many of the pensioners were concerned that their families would be burdened as the cost of their home may not cover the cost of the residential care they need.
Families need more funding, not 'cop-out' loans
Theresa Quinn cares for her mother Violet who has Dementia and Parkinsons. Her 83-year-old mother was forced to sell her home to pay for residential care, but Theresa took her out of the home because she said the care was not good enough.
Theresa says the Government's new White Paper on social care, released today, does not give families more choice and the funding pledges announced are "a bit of a cop-out".
White Paper is a 'betrayal' of victims of dementia
Gayle Willis from the Alzheimer's Society slammed the Government's proposed changes to how social care should be funded.
She said today's White Paper, introduced to Parliament by Health Secretary Andrew Lansley, was a "massive let down" and a "betrayal of people living with dementia".
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Labour: White Paper is 'half a plan'
Shadow Health Secretary Andy Burnham said the Government's proposed Social Care Bill is "half a plan" that does not take into account the pressure councils already face.
Mr Burnham said the Government needs to increase funding to councils to enable them to cope with the pressures from the costs of social care they already face. He said that without funding the reforms outlined in the White paper were implausible.
The Dilnot review 'is the right basis for any new funding model'
Health Secretary Andrew Lansley has said the Government agrees with the principles of the Dilnot Commission; capping the maximum cost of contributions and increasing the threshold for means-testing.
He said the Dilnot Commission's recommendations will form the basis of any new funding model, but that the Government needs to agree how to find the £1.7 billion, and this cannot happen until after a spending review.
New 'minimum standards' training for care workers
Health Secretary Andrew Lansley has announced a new range of minimum standards for care workers.
The minimum standards will afford greater dignity for those receiving care and the Government has pledged "more and better" training for care workers.
Andrew Lansley: 'No one should lose their home to fund their care'
Health Secretary Andrew Lansley said the proposals being unveiled by the Government today will reassure people that they will not have to sell their homes to fund their care.
Mr Lansley said the Government does want to put a cap on care costs, but needs to agree how this cap would be funded.