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Dementia Strategy Minister Promises Like 'Shutting the Stable Door After the Horse has Bolted'
March 16, 2010 2:30 PM
Sutton and Cheam MP, Paul Burstow, called a debate today to press the Government to make a reality of the National Dementia Strategy following new figures published by the Princes Royal Trust for Carers that show a £1 billion of funds announced to deliver national strategies has disappeared.
The debate comes on the day the Public Accounts Committee has published its report into the progress the government has made on its national dementia strategy. The Committee concludes that there is a gulf between the promise and the reality.
Tomorrow, Wednesday 17th March, Mr Burstow will present a Bill to Parliament to put the Secretary of State for health under a legal duty to deliver the national dementia strategy, hold NHS organisations to account for delivery and report to parliament.
Mr Burstow, who serves on the Public Accounts Committee, has championed the welfare of older people for many years. He said, "Dementia poses huge personal challenges to families every day. But unless the Government make sure that social services and the NHS are properly equipped to manage dementia the system will fail. Carers are already shouldering much of the responsibility for caring for people.
"It is a scandal that the NHS is siphoning off millions of pounds Ministers promised to carers, for dementia services and other national strategies. Last year the Minister, Phil Hope, told me to ask my PCT where the money had gone. It took my PCT five months to provide a not very good answer. For Phil Hope now to say he will personally hold PCTs to account is a classic case of shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted! The money has gone and the Minister is too late."
ENDS
Notes to editors
Paul Burstow will present the following Bill in parliament on 17th March 2010:
Dementia strategy Bill
Bill to place a duty on the Secretary of State to publish and keep under review a strategy to improve the provision of services for adults in England with dementia and their carers; to require the Secretary of State to report annually to Parliament on the implementation of the strategy; to require local authorities, the NHS and other bodies to act in accordance with relevant guidance issued by the Secretary of State; and for connected purposes.
Background.
A report by the University of Oxford and Alzheimer's Research Trust's called Dementia 2010. The report revealed that:
820,000 people in the UK live with dementia. Previous estimates put the figure at 700,000.
Dementia costs the UK economy £23 billion per year (previously estimated to be £17 billion). That is twice the cost of cancer (£12 billion per year), three times the cost of heart disease (£8 billion per year) and four times the cost of stroke (£5 billion).
Combined government and charitable investment in dementia research is 12 times lower than spending on cancer research. £590 million is spent on cancer research each year, while just £50 million is invested in dementia research. Heart disease receives £169 million per year and stroke research £23 million.
For every £1 million in care costs for the disease, £129,269 is spent on cancer research, £73,153 on heart disease research, £8,745 on stroke research and just £4,882 on dementia research.
Every dementia patient costs the economy £27,647 per year: more than the UK median salary (£24,700). By contrast, patients with cancer cost £5,999, stroke £4,770 and heart disease £3,455 per year.
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