Scottish cash ‘going to care providers’

Health minister Stephen Ladyman has claimed there is “mounting
evidence” that money allocated for free personal care in Scotland
ends up in the pockets of people who own care homes not those of
older people.

Ladyman told a Fair Rate to Care conference in London that the
Scottish system, which entitles over-65s to free nursing and
personal care, “transfers income and wealth to the better off at
the expense of those most in need”.

He said he was not convinced that conceding to demands from care
homes for increased rates per bed would make any difference to care
home capacity or raise standards, or that a funding increase to
councils would necessarily be passed on to care home owners.

“While many local councils are using the increased resources
central government has already given them to increase fees to care
homes, others are not,” he said.

“Problems occur where councils fail to commit the additional
resources central government has given them to stabilise their care
home market and choose to spend the additional resources
elsewhere.”