Spending Review - Alzheimer's Society comment

Fiona Carragher, Director of Research and Influencing at Alzheimer’s Society said:

'Eighteen months ago, the Government said they would fix the social care crisis once and for all. In the last nine months, the utterly shattered state of the still un-fixed system has been lit up for all to see by coronavirus.

People with dementia, who are by far the biggest recipients of social care, have been catastrophically hit, dying in their thousands. It’s good to have some support through winter, but we’re concerned that the Government’s view of long-term reform is now ‘improvement’ rather than ‘fundamental and comprehensive’ which was promised – surely no-one can doubt the desperate need for this?

'Why is basic care somehow seen as a luxury? Where is the universal social care that’s free at the point of use, on the same basis as schools and the NHS?

'We are encouraged at least to see the Government’s recognition of the pandemic’s drastic impact on medical research. We hope it will include vital funds to support medical research charities like ourselves, driving momentum towards new treatments. For the 850,000 people in the UK living with dementia, research offers hope - we need the Government’s commitment to their promise to double dementia research funding to ensure the pandemic does not delay our progress in beating this condition any further.'