Ban on family visits to care homes at start of pandemic had ‘devastating consequences’, inquiry finds – UK politics live

The Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice group has issued a statement about today’s inquiry report saying it shows that Matt Hancock’s claim about a protective ring being thrown around care homes (see 12.22pm) was a “cruel lie”.

double quotation markToday’s report is a devastating account of one of the darkest episodes in our country’s history. It shows that the government knew the care sector was extremely vulnerable to a pandemic and yet did nothing. Failing to act until it was too late. And It shows that Matt Hancock’s claim to have thrown a protective ring around care homes was a cruel lie. Months before telling us that lie, Matt Hancock sat in a room with Boris Johnson and Simon Stevens and made the decision to discharge hospital patients into care homes, without testing. Three men, with no medical expertise between them, made a decision that became a death sentence for our family members.

The most at-risk people in our society, the sick, elderly – many of whom had a full and long life ahead of them – were failed by a government who abandoned them and left them to die. That is the consequence of social care system treated as a second-class service – too difficult for politicians to reform, too easy to ignore. Our family members paid the price. That is why social care reform cannot wait.

We would like to hear from readers about what they think of today’s Covid inquiry report into what happened in care homes during the pandemic. You can submit a contribution here.

The Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice group has issued a statement about today’s inquiry report saying it shows that Matt Hancock’s claim about a protective ring being thrown around care homes (see 12.22pm) was a “cruel lie”.

double quotation markToday’s report is a devastating account of one of the darkest episodes in our country’s history. It shows that the government knew the care sector was extremely vulnerable to a pandemic and yet did nothing. Failing to act until it was too late. And It shows that Matt Hancock’s claim to have thrown a protective ring around care homes was a cruel lie. Months before telling us that lie, Matt Hancock sat in a room with Boris Johnson and Simon Stevens and made the decision to discharge hospital patients into care homes, without testing. Three men, with no medical expertise between them, made a decision that became a death sentence for our family members.

The most at-risk people in our society, the sick, elderly – many of whom had a full and long life ahead of them – were failed by a government who abandoned them and left them to die. That is the consequence of social care system treated as a second-class service – too difficult for politicians to reform, too easy to ignore. Our family members paid the price. That is why social care reform cannot wait.

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John Healey, the chancellor, has been accused of missing an open goal. The claim came from Tax Justice UK, which issued this statement, from its deputy director Caitlin Boswell, in response to the news that Healey has ruled out raising capital gains tax in the budget. (See 8.47am.)

double quotation markRuling out a pro-worker, pro-fairness and pro-growth tax rise is a missed open goal. It suggests this government is out of step with the large numbers of MPs across Westminster calling for this change, alongside leading economists. Let alone millions of people who are sick and tired of their needs feeling secondary to those of the super-rich.

Asking those with unimaginable wealth to pay just a little bit more would benefit us all – it’s people being able to afford the basics, see a doctor when they need one, or afford a safe place to live. These are some fundamental things that shouldn’t be hard to deliver in one of the richest countries in the world.

Tax Justice UK backs a plan to raise capital gains tax set out by the CenTax thinktank in a report two years ago. This would raise £14bn, according to CenTax (the Centre for the Analysis of Taxation).

And this is how Hallett concluded her statement.

double quotation markDuring the pandemic, the action taken by the UK government and devolved administrations to try and protect workers and users of adult social care came too late.

The failures were the direct result of an absence of proper pandemic planning for the adult social care sector.

This underlines why my recommendations in this report must be acted upon now, before the next pandemic strikes.

Hallett said one of her recommendations was for a voluntary register of care workers in England.

double quotation markI am also recommending the introduction of a voluntary register for the social care workforce in England.

The existing registers in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland proved invaluable during the pandemic. They allowed governments to identify recently retired professionals who could return to work and to communicate vital guidance directly. England must follow suit.

Hallett said care workers felt “overlooked and undervalued” during the pandemic.

double quotation markAt least 1.5 million care workers were providing care during the pandemic. Many suffered burnout as a consequence of extreme stress and exhaustion. Visits by health care workers dramatically reduced, and this placed an even greater burden on care workers who stepped in to provide this care. They put their own lives at risk to show compassion to the dying, leaving a long lasting impact on their own physical and mental health.

Hallett said, in any future pandemic, “financial support to protect care workers from economic hardship must be in place at the start”.

Hallett said DNACPRs were used too often.

double quotation markI now return to the deeply troubling issue of…