Tory MP tells LBC he'll vote against Govt social care changes
21 November 2021, 11:29 | Updated: 21 November 2021, 11:42
Ex-Justice sec confirms he will vote against social care reform
Former Justice Secretary Robert Buckland has said he will vote against planned changes to social care and hinted that other Conservative MPs will do the same.
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Speaking to LBC on Swarbrick on Sunday, the Tory MP for South Swindon was asked by Tom Swarbwick whether he was "minded" to vote for the amendment, which would change the way people within the means test progress towards the cap on social care costs.
"I think the Government should look again at this," said Mr Buckland.
"I think that we're in danger of putting the cart before the horse.
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"I think it's far better to actually publish the social care whitepaper first so that we can see what the new proposals are - what is the system that we're going to be funding?
"Let's have a look at that first."
Tom clarified if that meant Mr Buckland was currently planning on voting against the change, which ensures only the amount of money an individual contributes towards social care costs count towards the cap.
The MP replied: "Yes.
"I think that the Government must look again at this.
"Let's do the whitepaper first and then fine tune the way that this system's going to be funded."
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When asked if other Tory MPs had a similar view, the former Justice Secretary hinted that was the case, saying: "I think there's a lot of concern out there about this issue and I know that the Government is listening to those concerns."
In response to Mr Buckland's comments, Labour MP and Shadow Health Secretary tweeted: "Let’s hope other Tory MPs join Robert and Labour MPs in voting against this unfair care con tomorrow.
"Ministers need to go back to the drawing board and bring a fair alternative to Parliament."
Let’s hope other Tory MPs join Robert and Labour MPs in voting against this unfair care con tomorrow.
— Jonathan Ashworth (@JonAshworth) November 21, 2021
Ministers need to go back to the drawing board and bring a fair alternative to Parliament. https://t.co/ZVHVHsQjOV
