With the crisis in the care sector increasing rather than subsiding, the Cabinet member responsible for Adult Social Care (ASC) and Public Health shares his thoughts with News OnTheWight on the latest demands from Government.
Cllr Karl Love, who is also the councillor for East Cowes, said,
“Downing Street is completely out of touch with the reality of ASC and providing services for our Island people across the board.
“All the care corners that can be cut, have been, over many months during Covid to support the NHS and to keep the hospital-to-home care and ASC support moving.
“We cannot provide what we do not have the funding, facilities and staffing to deliver safely whatever PM Boris Johnson says.”
Government funding cuts: “We are at the cliff edge”
Looking toward the ASC budget, that will be agreed by councillors at next month’s annual budget meeting, Cllr Love went on to explain,
“We are at the cliff edge. Boris Johnson, our MP and the Government know it, but the Government is in denial and in my view, concealing the truth about the funding it is providing to ASC and our Island people.
“In reality our Government is cutting our 22/23 government grant. We are having to make savings of £3m, and people will have to pay more for less as a result.”
Love: Empty words from Government
In September 2021, the Government announced a £5.4 billion fund for NHS Covid-19 response over the following six months.
Cllr Love said,
“The £5.4 billion ASC government pot means nothing to ASC on our Island at all. This pot is just being allocated to the NHS and we are getting nothing from it at all for our ASC teams.
“Many Local Authorities are being forced to reduce spending and that means for our Island, in real time, has cuts to Adult Social Care amounting £1.7 million.
“The evidence is there for all to see. There is no new money from government just more empty words and their imposed cuts.”
The Cabinet member went on to say that he believed councils will go bust eventually because they cannot keep up with the realities of these Government cuts.
“Our Local Authority is being run into the ground by Government, just like some old car.”
Love: The public are being deceived
Cllr Love said that ASC have been forced to cut services, as the previous administration had to do too.
He said,
“I believe this Government is incompetent and the public are being deceived about how the £5.4 billion is being spent. That funding is not reaching ASC departments, it’s staying within NHS to try fix their issues.
“I’m not saying that they don’t need fixing but we work hand-in-hand and one doesn’t work without the other.”
Love: ‘Care close to home’ needed
He went on to explain,
“What we need is ‘care close to home’ to enable people to leave hospital and be supported safely at home. This is what ASC seeks to achieve.
“Care workers are not nurses and the care packages required to enable people to go home after hospitalisation are often these days very complex and that’s because people are being discharged early than they were previously from hospital and many have more complex needs as a result.
“The government demands our NHS speeds up, but we cannot do this in ASC because we don’t have the staff or funding.”
Love: I’m not having it
Cllr Love said he believes the public are being mislead by the Government over their claims about fixing ASC. He believes they are just making things worse.
Cllr Love told News OnTheWight,
“Their relentlessly pressure to speed up will make us unsafe and I’m not having it.
“The Government are going to bankrupt many small councils at this rate and they know it. So I ask is this a deliberate ploy by Government to force small councils into larger regional council control?”
Praise for all in the sector, including volunteers carers at home
The Cabinet member for ASC finished by calling for better support for the sector and thanking all those who work within it.
He said,
“We are doing the very best we can and we will not compromise the care we give to our Island residents. Our volunteer, care workers, and care homes have done the most amazing jobs and they deserve better support from this Government than is currently being given.
“I want to thank all our care staff from local authority social services to care homes and care providers and to Wight Care, for the dedication they have shown during this pandemic. We truly appreciate it.
“We would also be nothing without the wonderful support of the hundreds and thousands of volunteer carers at home. A massive thank goes out all of you.”
Image: Markus Winkler under CC BY 2.0
