New NHS-style social care system could take decades, Dilnot says

A caller NHS‑style social‑care strategy for England could take decades to put into practice, economist Sir Andrew Dilnot told the BBC. Sir Andrew, who chaired a committee that proposed reforms to the system 15 years ago, said Prime Minister Andy Burnham appears to want social care to be entirely free, including residential costs. Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, he warned that the price of such a scheme would be “very substantial.” With Burnham pledging to enact his plans before voters go to the polls at the next general election, Sir Andrew remarked that change “is present further away.” Adult social care provides state‑funded support to help people live more independently, often in their own homes. Unlike the NHS, however, social care in England is not free at the point of use, leaving some individuals facing large bills. In an interview with the BBC’s Sunday with Laura Kuenssberg (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crwyzd3gv519o), Burnham said his proposals would mean “everyone contributes, everyone is covered” and refused to rule out tax increases to finance the system. He promised to release further details of his vision in his party’s platform on Tuesday. Burnham also indicated that some elements of the plan might not be delivered before the next general election, as he intends to honour the commitments made in Labour’s 2024 election manifesto, which ruled out rises in national insurance, income tax or VAT. Labour MP and former minister Darren Jones told Laura Kuenssberg that scrapping the pensions triple lock could be “an option that the government should see alongside others” to raise money for social‑care reform. The triple‑lock guarantee ensures that the state pension rises each year by whichever is highest of average wage growth, inflation or 2.5 %; maintaining it is also a Labour manifesto pledge. The next general election is not scheduled until August 2029, although Burnham could opt to call an earlier vote. Sir Andrew added that the delay in social‑care reform “is present further away” than suggested when Burnham first announced a new national care service for England in a July speech shortly after becoming prime minister. He noted that if the proposals appear in Labour’s 2029 election manifesto, they would emerge roughly 30 years after Sir Tony Blair launched a royal commission on social care and more than 15 years after Sir Andrew’s own committee reported its findings.