Care Services

Lord Hanningfield
asked Her Majesty's Government:

What assessment they have made of the practice whereby costs for care are transferred from the National Health Service to local government; and how widespread they consider the practice to be. [HL2188]

The Minister of State, Department of Health (Lord Hunt of Kings Heath)
The National Health Service and social services have a duty to work in partnership to provide services that meet the needs of the local population. The NHS has a legal responsibility to provide healthcare and nursing care, which social services cannot provide. Delivering high-quality social care and healthcare in every area while remaining on a sound financial footing can only be achieved by NHS bodies and local authorities working together to make best use of the available resources.

Lord Hanningfield
asked Her Majesty's Government:

What information on increased level of demand and acute pressures in adult social care has been taken into consideration in their planning for the Comprehensive Spending Review 2007. [HL2915]

Lord Hunt of Kings Heath
Planning for the Comprehensive Spending Review is taking full account of the projections of the likely increases in demographic factors, principally the number of older people and the number of people with learning and physical disabilities, and likely inflation rates, based on trends in the past three years for employment costs for all staff in the social care sector, capital costs and the gross domestic product deflator for other costs.

These factors have been assessed in full consultation with the Local Government Association.