What are the government’s plans for a long-term solution on #socialcare reform?

Tomorrow at 10am we question Secretary of State @MattHancock @1adass and @LGAcomms for our inquiry into social care funding and workforce.

Watch live: https://parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/3d55acfa-2b27-40f2-a258-2ee99fab360a

Our session on social care: funding and workforce with Secretary of State @MattHancock, @1adass and @LGAcomms has now started.

Watch live here: https://parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/3d55acfa-2b27-40f2-a258-2ee99fab360a

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We fear that without further investment is on the brink of collapse, says @1adass. The Chancellor needs to address immediate pressures in local authorities and the social care sector, and make a commitment to long-term reform and funding.

We don't want a short-term solution to be a substitute for a serious announcement about getting on with reform in social care, says @LGAcomms. Social care needs funding so that people can live their lives in the way they want to.

In the last ten years social care budgets have risen by 16.5% says @LGAcomms, but inflation and demographic changes have risen by 28.3%. Clearly, demand for social care exceeds supply, so the only thing you can do is prioritise and ration.

We've had a nearly 6% reduction in the number of people being looked after by local authorities, who have been forced to prioritise. People are being left to fend for themselves and there are around 1.5-2 million people with unmet need or under-met need, says @1adass.

About a third of social care providers are estimated by @1adass to be making a loss, and that may rise. The £3.2bn allocated to local government has enabled councils to assist providers but most councils are reaching the end of the pot - just as winter is approaching.

Sarah Pickup @LGAComms acknowledges local authority commissioning of social care has been mixed, but says resource and capacity constraints don't lead to ideal commissioning and that local authority commissioning at its best is really good at partnership working in communities.

People are the best determinants of what should be commissioned on their behalf says James Bullion @1adass. In commissioning homecare we have been far too transactional and don't have an outcomes-based approach.

James Bullion @1adass calls for a social care workforce strategy and a National Care Wage of £10.90 per hour, linked to a band 3 NHS healthcare assistant - the median social care wage in 2019 was £8.10 per hour.

Social care is not an island says Sarah Pickup @LGAComms. It has to link to the NHS but also to housing, leisure and public health services. All of those services are critical and need a multi-year funding settlement along with social care.

We are now questioning the Secretary of State @MattHancock on the second half of today’s session on social care: funding and workforce.

Watch live: https://parliamentlive.tv/Event/Index/3d55acfa-2b27-40f2-a258-2ee99fab360a

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The Chair @Jeremy_Hunt begins by thanking @MattHancock and particularly the staff at @DHSCgovuk for their efforts during the pandemic.

@MattHancock recognises the powerful videos from social care users capture the challenge we face as a society in finding long term reform for social care – high bills and costs, plus extra demands and needs above that for which the state provides.

@MattHancock tells us the current way the social care system operates clearly has embedded in it a series of injustices that have grown up over time.

@MattHancock recognises the pressures in social care - demographic challenges, pressure on the delivery of care in the short-term, and long-term funding reform. He says he is in the depths of a spending review discussion and will share work done so far.

@MattHancock says that the health and care visa will extend to people with a registered qualification working in social care. He says he does not think the Immigration Bill will undermine parity between NHS and social care professionals.

@MattHancock says there is a case for a more integrated approach to training and employment across health and social care. He says he would love to make it easier for a nurse to move between working in the NHS and working in social care.

Asked about delays to bringing forward social care reform, @MattHancock says the Government made clear manifesto commitments on social care, but obviously coronavirus has delayed longer-term reform. Internal discussions on reform have picked up again, he says.

A second coronavirus wave isn't inevitable says @MattHancock - it depends on the actions we take. The first line of defence is social distancing. The next line of defence is testing and tracing which is radically stronger than in March. Local action is the third line of defence.

@MattHancock tells us that per head of the population we have one of the biggest testing systems in the world, and very sophisticated contact tracing.

@MattHancock acknowledges consequences of long covid and says long-term impacts can be debilitating even if initial illness wasn't severe. He says it's important to remember as infections rise among young people. He offers to ensure GPs know they can refer to long covid clinics.

Responding to testimony from a cancer patient, @MattHancock says that some treatments - on clinical advice - were not appropriate during a pandemic and had to be delayed. The policy was that each patient was communicated with individually.

@MattHancock says we don't yet know how many excess cancer deaths may end up being caused by #COVID19 as it depends on getting through the backlog. He says we are making progress and the number of people waiting more than 62 days for cancer diagnosis & treatment has halved.

@MattHancock says a lesson we have learnt from covid which applies throughout the NHS is that we have not had enough focus on diagnostics and far too much on patching things up later. This was the case for covid and is true for other infectious disease, and for cancer diagnostics

@MattHancock says reassuring patients and the public will be an option using rapid turnaround, next-generation tests in huge quantities when available. Referencing current testing challenges, he says operational challenges will be resolved "in the coming weeks"

Talking about elective surgery, @MattHancock says in England the goal is to reach 95% of normal over the Autumn. In many areas we have nearly got back to normal. In those areas with aerosol-generating procedures it's harder. Testing and infection control measures will help.

@MattHancock says all of us must take the current spike in coronavirus infection rates very seriously indeed. He wants us all to be able to enjoy the kind of Christmas we all yearn for but that will take effort from us all - hands, face, space.

@MattHancock says there is a policy that people should not have to travel more than 75 miles for a #COVID19 test and says he has not heard any evidence of this happening since it was put in place, but he acknowledges operational challenges with an increase in demand for testing.

Asked about local lockdowns, @MattHancock says that support for people to self-isolate in lockdown areas has been put in place, and contact tracing works seamlessly across national and local teams.

Asked about mental health support for children affected by lockdown, @MattHancock acknowledges the importance of the issue and says the fastest funding increases in the NHS are coming in children's mental health, and we need to improve access services and support in schools.

@MattHancock says his most important message on mental health is: there is help, and people should ask for it.

Asked about parents' access to babies in neonatal units during the pandemic, @MattHancock says he has taken this up with the NHS and will write to the Committee within a fortnight with a progress update.

@MattHancock says he "very much hopes" that the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch Bill will be brought in the next year.