On Tuesday in Parliament, I made a speech on the proposed National Care Service. I very much welcome that the Scottish Government has recognised the need for social care reform. But I believe we need to be open and honest: their proposals are for a national care commissioning service, not a national care service.
Whereas our NHS employs doctors, nurses, porters, cleaners and others, the proposed National Care Service won’t be employing care staff. Like the NHS, a genuine National Care Service must be free at the point of use and designed to meet the those of people who need it, not delivering profits to shareholders.
Here’s my full speech: