Oral Answers to Questions | Health: Southern Cross Care Homes

Andrew George (St Ives, Liberal Democrat)

What other lessons have the Government learned from this case? The new regulatory measures in the Health and Social Care Bill

are welcome, but if greater proportions of both health and social care are being exposed to this level of speculative capital, do the Government not need to reflect on whether further measures are required?

 

Paul Burstow (Minister of State (Care Services), Health; Sutton and Cheam, Liberal Democrat)

I am keen not to start leaping to lots of conclusions. About 77% of all social care provision in England is already in the private sector. This is not an experiment, but a fact of life that has evolved over the last 20 and 30 years and has been overseen by Administrations of all colours. What we do need to do is ensure that we have effective, proportionate regulation that safeguards the interests of residents who see these homes as their homes, along with robust arrangements on the ground to safeguard good quality.