UK NEWS

MINISTERS IN £70M FUNDING ROW

WARNING: Lord Stewart Sutherland

Tuesday April 29,2008

By Paul Gilbride

SCOTTISH ministers are heading for another cash battle with West-minster after it emerged the flagship free personal care scheme for the elderly faces a £40million shortfall.

A study by Lord Sutherland yesterday warned the massive funding gap must be tackled if the scheme is to be sustained.

It also called for the reinstatement of £30million a year in attendance allowance paid to some pensioners by the Department of Work and Pensions, which was scrapped with the onset of free personal care six years ago. The over-65s have been entitled to free personal and nursing care (FPNC) at home or in care homes since 2002.

But the policy has been beset by controversy, including concerns about under-funding, the refusal by some councils to pay for food preparation and the operation of waiting lists. Lord Sutherland’s report found that the policy was sound, but called for increased funding, greater consistency and transparency, as well as better planning.

Free care was implemented by the Labour/Lib Dem Scottish Executive. And a review was ordered by Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon.

Lord Sutherland said it was an “inequity” attendance allowance had been withheld by the UK Government and called upon SNP ministers to apply pressure to have it returned.

He said: “The Scottish Government, we believe, should provide additional funding to stabilise the policy in the short term. The UK Government, we think, should not have withdrawn attendance allowance funding.”

Nationalist ministers are already at loggerheads with the Treasury over plans to cut £400million-a-year in Council Tax benefit relief from the block grant if plans to replace council tax with a local income tax are adopted north of the Border.

Ms Sturgeon said: “The report clearly states that the UK Government should not have withdrawn the attendance allowance resources.”

Former Labour First Minister Henry McLeish said: “This is about a big policy in Scotland that requires Westminster, in my judgment, to take a much more mature view.”