This is commendable from the Liberal Democrats and needed, but is nowhere going far enough on many issues, such as carers’ salaries as £2 on the National Living Wage of £11.44 will not be sufficient while £2 on the Real Living Wage would be much better, but ideally at least £15 so it is on par with salaries at supermarkets. one of the other issues is that it is not just social care for adults for social care for children is at least equally important. But, there are issues of travel expenses, working conditions, recognition of holidays, bank holidays, and others.
Social care has been a poor relation for far too long and should be treated as an emergency service along with the NHS, for one can’t exist without the other, which neither Labour nor Tories seem to fail to understand either by ignorance or more than likely by design.
The ‘head in the sand’ approach is dangerous for in the far not too distant future social care could with all purposes disappear and with it the NHS.
Effectively sorting social care would not only solve the ‘bed-blocking’ crisis but to some extent improve health issues, so reducing health dependency on the NHS. It wouldn’t improve aspects of disabilities but could minimise the extent of declines in health, thus reducing the extent of hospital admissions.
Unfortunately many can’t see the need for social care and in this the government and other politicians are included. Many people don’t become aware of the need with regards social care until their own needs or family needs arise and then they see the extent of the problems.
Coupled with this is the way family carers are treated, who currently save the UK over £162 billion more than the related costs of the NHS. Yes, there is Carers Allowance, but it is only £81.90 per week and is a taxable benefit. Earning more than £151 per week net of National Insurance and other taxation. Just a 1p over means the Carers Allowance will need to be repaid, not like other benefits where there is a sliding scale. If you are in receipt of the State Pension you can’t claim the allowance even if your net Pension is below £151 per week.
Much is said about the high numbers relating to immigration, but if it wasn’t for persons coming to the UK, then the large insufficiency of people working in care would be so much greater. That also doesn’t take into account the needs of persons required in hospitality, agriculture and others.
Many believe that anyone can do care, which they can if is not being done to a satisfactory level, but to receive good quality care on a constant basis people not only have to wish to care, but always provide it with good quality. The right care for the right person, for the right care for the wrong person can be just as bad as providing bad quality care, with showing respect for the person being cared for and their property. In this, the choice of the person being cared for is also to be respected as it is their choice how they are cared for and not the carers unless it would be dangerous or illegal to do so, but then this has to be explained sufficiently to the person being cared for. So caring for someone involves having great skills so care is far from being an unskilled profession, but is a highly skilled profession and care has to be individual and not the same for everyone and the ability to change as the person receiving care requests.
With the current salaries for carers they are not only way insufficient, it is that anyone is willing to care for anyone for so little salary. All carers should be respected be they unpaid or paid and neither Labour or the Tories are doing so and never have, the Liberal Democrats are a little better, but not by much for much more is required not tomorrow, but now and should have been done long in the Past. If it had been then the crisis in both social care and the NHS would not be as great as it currently is.
Will we get a caring government, I doubt it.
Carer Voice 