A TORY veteran is calling for a near £3 billion a year tax raid on the over-50s to prevent a social care disaster in Britain.
Damian Green – one of Theresa May’s closest allies – said the Government should consider a 1 per cent National Insurance ‘charge’ on the estimated 8 million 50 to 64 year-olds in the country.
And he also proposes taxing the Winter Fuel allowance.
The money would pay for a ‘Universal Care Entitlement’ which would guarantee a basic level of care home provision for Brits in later life.
The ex-Cabinet Minister also suggests better off OAPs should be encouraged to tap into their housing wealth to “top up” their care and pay for “larger rooms, better food, more trips or additional entertainment”.
Writing in a policy paper for the Centre for Social Justice, Mr Green concedes it would be better to divert savings from any Government Spending Review into care than introducing a new tax.
But he says the NI tax may work if over 50s are shown “the money involved was going solely and directly to the care of the elderly”
He says: “It’s very much a last resort but it should remain on the table”
The report comes just days after the King’s Fund warned the social care crisis facing the country was “critical” given forecasts the number of over 75s will double to 10.6 million in the next 40 years.
And there has been growing fury over the huge delay in the Government’s social care policy paper. It was initially expected in the summer of 2017 and then in December 2018.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock missed the latest self-imposed target of April 1 for its publication earlier this month.
Mr Green says: “The crisis in our care system is one of the most pressing issues our country currently faces.
“That’s why I propose a wholesale change in our approach to social care.”
