Labour follows President Biden's goal to make home care central to pandemic recovery

President Joe Biden’s decision to make home care central to the USA’s coronavirus recovery infrastructure plan has been welcomed by Labour’s shadow care minister Liz Kendall who says Britain’s social care is “as much a part of our infrastructure as the roads and railways”.

Liz Kendall backed the US president’s goal in her speech at the ADASS Spring Seminar, stating Britain must consider home care first in a “century of ageing”.

'Home-first principle relies on a fundamental shift’

Liz Kendall said: “We are always going to need residential and nursing homes, but the vast majority of people want to stay in their own homes for as long as possible, but too many people struggle to get even the basic support or home adaptations that make this possible.

“Delivering on the home-first principle relies on a fundamental shift in the focus of support towards prevention and early intervention.

“One and a half million older people need help with the very basics of getting up, washed, dressed and fed, but don’t get any support at all. That’s not right for them, or taxpayers if they end up needing more expensive care as a result.”

The shadow minister for social care said the Labour Party wants to see a 10-year investment plan for social care in Britain.

Liz Kendall added: “If you neglect your country’s physical infrastructure, you get roads full of potholes and buckling bridges, which prevents your economy from functioning properly. The same is true if you fail to invest in your social infrastructure.

’President Biden gets all this’

“President Biden gets all this, which is why he has made home care a central plank of his post-pandemic infrastructure plan. And I think Britain deserves this level of ambition too.”

US President Joe Biden has proposed to spend $400 billion over eight years on home and community-based services, as part of his $2 trillion infrastructure plan.

Ms Kendall added: “As a starting point, Labour has called on the government to guarantee all care workers are paid at least a Real Living Wage of £10 an hour when they bring forward their plan for social care reform.

“One of the biggest complaints you hear is people having to battle their way round all the different services, telling their story time and time again. That’s not good for them and it’s wasteful and inefficient too. We need one care system built around the needs of users and families.”