Image

How our local MPs voted on the controversial Health and Care Bill amendment

Health and Care Bill

How our local MPs voted on the controversial Health and Care Bill amendment

The new Health and Care Bill currently going through the House of Commons will see no-one in the UK paying more than £86,000 towards their own care costs.

Earlier this week, Boris Johnson narrowly succeeded in getting MPs to back a controversial amendment to the Bill – winning by 272 to 246 – despite a rebellion from Tory backbenchers.

The amendment will see more people becoming entitled to means-tested council funding – but will also see the poorest members of society having to the pay the same as some of the richest.

The new cap would come into effect in October 2023, and the PM insists it is “more generous” than the current system.

The MP for Great Grimsby, Lia Nici, and the MP for Cleethorpes, Martin Vickers, both voted for the amendment – but Labour, other opposition parties and 19 Tory MPs rejected the plan, arguing that poorer people would lose out.

The cap would cover care expenses for things like washing and dressing, but would not help with living costs such as food, utility bills or care home fees.

Under the government’s wider social care plan, from October 2023:

  • those with assets of less than £20,000 will not have to pay anything from these towards care fees – although they might have to pay from their income
  • those with more than £100,000 in assets – the value of their home, savings or investments – will not get any financial help from the council
  • those with assets between £20,000 and £100,000 will qualify for council help, but will have to pay £86,000 out of their own pocket to reach the cap

The cap has been passed through the House of Commons, and now will need to be discussed in the House of Lords before it can made into legislation.

The timeline of the Bill will be determined by whether the Lords reject it or pass it, with it having passed through the Commons on Monday 22 November.

Lia Nici and Martin Vickers have both been contacted for comment on the amendment.

Contact Gi Grimsby
Email us: news@gi-media.co.uk
Follows us on Facebook and Twitter for all the latest local stories, breaking news and to join the conversation

administrator