Prime Minister Andy Burnham pledged to tackle what he described as decades of neglect in England’s adult social care system and said he would not rule out tax rises to help pay for comprehensive reforms.
Review accelerated and reforms promised
Speaking after a speech at a care setting in north London, the prime minister said he intended to publish the long-running review led by Baroness Louise Casey within the next year rather than in 2028, and to push for a closer alignment between social care and the NHS.
He set out a broad direction of travel rather than detailed policy, promising improved pay and training for care workers and a new national approach to delivering adult social care. He also said he wanted to protect families from having to sell their homes to pay for care, reiterating arguments he previously made when serving as health secretary in 2009.
"I think we owe it to the public before we talk about tax rises.. you first have to look the public in the eye and say 'Are we doing everything we can do from within what we've got?'"
Funding and cross‑party outreach
The prime minister said some elements — notably improved pay and training for the workforce — would be "fully funded" from within existing budgets. He added that more comprehensive reforms would involve "difficult decisions" and could require putting measures before the public in due course.
Burnham held talks with the Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey and Conservative shadow health secretary Stuart Andrew as part of efforts to secure cross‑party support. The Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch was reported to be unavailable for talks.
- New national care service concept announced as an objective.
- Workforce improvements: higher pay and better training pledged.
- Review timetable: Baroness Casey's review to be published next summer, accelerated from 2028.
Political and practical implications
The announcement reopens familiar political questions about how to fund social care reform and whether cross‑party consensus can be built. Burnham warned that securing the necessary resources would require prioritisation within existing budgets before any conversation about taxation, but left the door open to raising taxes if additional revenue proved necessary and if public consent could be obtained.
| Item | Previously | Now |
|---|---|---|
| Casey review publication | Planned for 2028 | To be published next summer |
| Workforce funding | Unspecified | Announced as fully funded from current budgets |
How the government translates these commitments into legislation, the scale of any funding ask and whether it secures the cross‑party backing Burnham sought will be decisive for the prospects of sustained reform. For now, the prime minister has signalled intent and an openness to hard fiscal choices while stressing a preference to exhaust existing resources first.
