Labour's £2.8bn pay and tax raid will hasten collapse of care, say experts

THE social care system will be crippled by costly changes brought in by Labour, with charities saying they will have a "devastating" effect on the sector.

- Giles Sheldrick

Care England, the charity representing independent providers, said few will be able to shoulder the financial hits of employer national insurance increases and rises in the National Living Wage.

It said the combined effect will lead to "impossible choices that devastate lives" including the refusal to accept new council care contracts, redundancies and ultimately, mass closures.

Prof Martin Green, the charity's chief executive, told how the social care system was already "on its knees" - and urged the Government to act "before it's too late".

He added: "The message is crystal clear.

We are watching the fabric of our care system unravel in front of our eyes.

"If the Government fails to act now, services will close, people will go without care, families will be left to shoulder unbearable burdens and the NHS already on its knees will collapse under the weight of unmet social care needs.

"Every day of inaction pushes providers to implement their exit strategies and scale back services to the point from which there may be no return." Analysis by the Nuffield Trust estimates social care providers face a £2.8billion hit due to NI and wage increases.

Separately, one in five of the 1,180 providers polled by the Care Provider Alliance said they were planning to close.

Some 73% warned they would have to refuse new referrals from councils or the NHS, while 57% planned to hand back contracts and 64% would make staff redundant.