A THREE year probe into reforming Britain’s broken social care system is “inappropriately” long, Sir Keir Starmer was warned today.
Top economist Sir Andrew Dilnot blasted the PM for launching another lengthy probe into the long-term funding of support for the elderly.
The architect of the abandoned “Dilnot reforms” slammed Labour for waiting until 2028, a year before the next general election, to be shown recommendations by the new Commission on Social Care, led by Baroness Louise Casey.
Mr Dilnot told the Commons Health and Social Care committee: “I’d certainly like to see the Commission report earlier and I’d very much hope that it will.
“I don’t get the impression that Louise Casey is somebody who likes to hang about.
“I can’t think of any reason why it should take three years, I simply can’t.
“The commission that I was part of took a year, a year from being commissioned to final reporting.”
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Sir Andrew said ideas for reform should come in the first half of this parliament and the PM should consider whacking up taxes again to pay for them.
The top economist blasted ministers from the current and former governments for having “not had courage to go forward and do something”.
Sir Andrew said that it is “bleedin’ obvious” that in an “affluent society” care should be properly funded – and the responsibility now lies with the PM to sort out the issue once and for all.
He added: “I think Sir Keir’s views will be absolutely critical in this and if the Prime Minister gets behind this then something, I think, will happen.
“So I am optimistic. I’m always vague about timescales but we will get this done and we must because how can we look ourselves in the mirror and not deal with this?”
Around 2.6 million people in England aged over 50 have been unable to access care, according to Age UK.
Millions of silver-haired Brits have been left struggling to go to the toilet, eat and have a shower.
Meanwhile, the cost of care has soared for local authorities, who say they do not have the resources to meet surging demand.
Town halls are also struggling to recruit staff, with a 9.9 per cent vacancy rate reported in 2022/23.
Sir Andrew led a review into the future of funding social care and published his proposals in 2011.
But despite his reforms being accepted and praised by previous governments, they have never been enacted.
At the October Budget last year Rachel Reeves faced enormous backlash for scrapping plans by former Tory leader Boris Johnson to place an £86,000 cap on the amount anyone in England would need to spend on their personal care over their lifetime.
The cap would be paid for by a hike in national insurance, a decision that was later reversed by ex-PM Rishi Sunak.
The Chancellor insisted the proposals were not “deliverable” – but Sir Andrew slammed the move as a “tragedy”.
