Hancock seeks consensus in approach to social care crisis

MATT HANCOCK, the Health Secretary, has written to all MPS and peers in a bid to secure an all-party agreement to solve the social care crisis.

“We do not need another commission – we need action now, finally, to seek a solution that can support future generations,” he said in the letter.

Mr Hancock said the aim was to deliver a scheme that meant nobody was forced to sell their home to pay for care or was hit by “unpredictably large costs” for which it was hard to plan.

However, he acknowledged that the number of reports suggesting different approaches showed how difficult it was to reach agreement. “We know that this will not be easy,” he said.

And he warned that it would need to be financially sustainable and consider the impact on taxpayers against competing demands from other public services.

In the election, the Conservatives promised to “urgently seek a crossparty consensus” in order to “bring forward the necessary proposal and legislation for long-term reform”.

But Labour has accused the Government of only offering an “open-ended invitation for comments”.

In yesterday’s letter, Mr Hancock said: “Too many people are now hit by unpredictably large costs that are hard to plan for, and left with little wealth despite a lifetime of hard work.

“As we set out in our manifesto, we will seek to build cross-party consensus so that the reforms we progress will last long into the future.”