Clause 49 - Preserved rights: transfer to local authorities of responsibilities as to accommodation
Health and Social Care Bill
9:00 pm
Mr John Hutton (Minister of State, Department of Health; Barrow and Furness, Labour)
I am grateful to the hon. Member for New Forest, West for the way in which he moved his amendment. That will allow me to reassure both him and the Committee not only about the reasons for making the changes, but also about the manner in which we will implement them.
It has been widely recognised, by the royal commission and many others, including our own constituents, that the preserved rights scheme is a source of serious difficulties for many people in our country. First and foremost, it restricts a person's choice of accommodation to part III accommodation. For younger disabled people in particular, that is an unnecessary restriction. There are other ways, and other care settings, in which care can reasonably be provided. The preserved rights scheme does not allow that choice to be made.
There are also serious problems about the shortfall between the residential care that the preserved rights income support provides and the rate at which those care services are being challenged. That is causing serious difficulties for many thousands of people, particularly the elderly, who are experiencing real distress as a result.
The changes are being made for the right reasons. We are making the system better for people in long-term care, and we will not introduce those changes in a way that will disrupt the continuity and pattern of the provision of care for the elderly or for younger disabled people who currently receive the preserved rights income support. I understand why the hon. Gentleman has tabled the amendment, and I share his concern to ensure that people who are affected by the ending of the preserved rights scheme should be given as much information as possible about the impact of the change.
The hon. Gentleman courteously acknowledged that we have consulted extensively about the proposal and have tried all along to make sure that people understand what we are doing. We try to respond to the concerns that many people naturally feel if the pattern of funding for their residential care is altered. We have worked closely with the Department of Social Security to ensure a smooth transition to the new system. The DSS plans to notify people with preserved rights to benefits of the reasons for the change to their benefit payments, and to explain the local authority's involvement in, and future responsibility for, their care needs. The DSS plans to do that well in advance of the changes taking place.
Clause 49 allows for an approach to be made by local authorities to the people affected before the change takes place. That means that we shall expect local authorities to undertake care and financial assessments in many cases before the appointed date. As a result, a considerable number of people affected by the change will have had some personal contact with the local authority before the change takes place, and should be fully informed about how it will affect them.
In addition, we intend to issue guidance to local authorities to address the issue of how to prepare for the changes. The guidance will make clear to the local authorities their responsibility for ensuring that they provide an explanation about the impact of the change to those affected by it. I share the hon. Gentleman's concern, but hope that he will recognise that there is no need to regulate and that the point of concern, and issue of principle, that he has raised, are fully accepted by us. We intend to make sure that the changes operate smoothly and fairly.