Arbuthnot warns that Government social care plans could raise council tax bills

James Arbuthnot, Member of Parliament for North East Hampshire, this week warned of a Government plan to leave Hampshire County Council with a massive bill to pay for new social care plans.

Analysis has revealed that the Government’s unfunded plans for free personal care at home could put £26 a year on the average council tax bill, on top of other local pressures. This is due to an estimated £580 million black hole left by the Government.

• Senior councillors in Hampshire have warned that the Government’s plans “are unclear, unfunded and are likely to have a significant impact on existing local services, including possible cuts and rises in council tax”.

• Town hall experts at the Local Government Association have added that “this is clearly a new burden” on councils, while Social Services directors from across the country have asserted that the Government has “significantly underestimated the true costs involved.”

• On top of the council tax hike, there is also the threat of an additional £20,000 “death tax” by Gordon Brown to pay for new National Care Service proposals.

Arbuthnot said: “Everybody wants to give older people more support in their old age, especially the most vulnerable. That is why Conservatives will introduce a voluntary Home Protection Scheme to allow people to make sure they never have to sell their home to pay for residential care.

“But the Government’s plans to extend free personal care and to introduce a National Care Service are in chaos. Ministers are considering levying a compulsory death tax of up to £20,000 on every person in England, and now it looks like they’ll put another £26 a year on council tax in North East Hampshire. It’s time for the Government to come clean and explain how they will fund their new plans.”