Getty ImagesReform of social care in Wales is stuck because ministers “don’t want to make decisions about money”, according to an expert.
Prof Gerry Holtham wrote a report seven years ago which said social care for older people could be funded by raising income tax in Wales.
Care home owners have said a national care service would erase inequalities in funding between councils.
The Welsh government said it was already working on creating a national scheme, but that a funding solution had yet to be found.
Costs for social care are currently met either by a resident or their local authority.
Ministers have said they want to get rid of this system, and set up another like the NHS which would be free at the point of need – but how would it be financed?
Mr Holtham’s report in 2018 put forward a plan which would see people in Wales pay between 1-3% extra in income tax, depending on age, to fund social care here.
But he said not much had happened since because politicians were too afraid to grasp the nettle.
“They don’t want to make the decisions about money,” he told BBC Politics Wales on Sunday.
“At the moment, there’s a sort of phobia that democratic politicians have about raising taxes.
“If you tell the public ‘look, we’re going to have to pay this tax or this present situation will continue or deteriorate’, I’m not so sure the public wouldn’t agree to that.
“But I think you’ve got to have the nerve to have that conversation.”
Timeline
- June 2018: Holtham report becomes the latest in a long line of inquiries and commissions designed to prompt action on the issue
- February 2020: Welsh ministers say they are looking at increasing income tax to pay for care
- April 2021: Just before the last Senedd election, that plan was ruled out by Labour
- September 2022: The Welsh government says it wants to set up a national care service, but that it would take about 10 years
Scotland and England have had similar issues with getting a national care service off the ground.
The Scottish government dumped its plans in January because of a lack of support and questions about how it would be paid for.
The UK government has set up a commission to start looking into funding for a national care service in England but it will not report back before 2028.
Bridgend councillor Jane Gebbie, who also represents Wales’ 22 councils on social care via the Welsh Local Government Association, said change could not come soon enough.
She also said Wales could get a national care service much sooner if funding was resolved.
“Government know that the demand on our services is increasing,” she said.
“There’s pay disparities between health boards and local government.
“That’s another wicked issue that they are going to have to resolve before we can have any sort of national care service.”
Mario Kreft, chairman of Care Forum Wales, the umbrella group which speaks for the sector, wants to see different care charges levied across Welsh councils equalised so that everyone would pay the same, getting rid of a so-called “postcode lottery” in care.
He has welcomed the plan for a national service, but questioned how long it should take.
“We’ve seen so many of these initiatives, royal commissions and so forth about social care, but it always seems to get to the point of being ‘knock it into the long grass, too expensive’, it’s a problem that’s too hard to handle.”
The Welsh government said it had already launched its National Office for Care and Support to help deliver the first stage of its 10-year plan to create a national care service for Wales.
“Our vision for a national care service in Wales would see a system that provides excellent quality care, supports attractive and rewarding work, and is closely integrated with the NHS and the broader public sector,” a spokesperson said.
“Ambitious plans such as these need to sit within the context of a sustainable funding solution which supports our social care sector and enables it to thrive.”
