WIREDGOV

Julia Unwin, Chief Executive of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation said recently:

While we welcome the publication of the long-awaited Social Care White Paper, we are deeply frustrated that more progress has not been made, and that the decision on how to pay for long-term care has been postponed yet again.

"The Secretary of State says this is a watershed moment. It is not. Extending current practice on deferred payments is entirely sensible, but it is also a sticking plaster. Andrew Dilnot's Commission gave us all hope for a new fair settlement and achieved wide-spread support – it is hugely disappointing his recommendations are not being acted upon now.

"Successive governments have failed to act. Without a sense of urgency more of us face insecurity and uncertainty as we age. The failure to address social care properly will only mean more pressure on the NHS thereby destroying all hopes of a sustainable and functioning health system in the future."