Can Boris finally ‘fix’ social care?

It’s been almost a year since Boris Johnson said he would not wait to ‘fix the problem of social care that every government has flunked for the last 30 years’. With a green paper detailing the government’s plan finally due, we’ll soon learn whether the Prime Minister is as good as his word. We’ll also see whether Johnson succeeds in avoiding the pitfalls encountered by his predecessors. Might he tumble into the same trap that blew up Theresa May’s bungled snap election?

The wrecks of those previous attempts – sent out with such high hopes – are plentiful. Talking to the politicians in charge of those efforts from three different parties and five administrations for Engage Britain common themes emerge. From Andy Burnham to Nick Timothy, would-be reformers have seen the ‘problem of social care’ as a series of inter-linked systemic failures. An underfunded service increases demand on the NHS, while the means-test complicates delivery and generates iniquities.