Warnings issued over social care reform in Scotland

COSLA, the umbrella group for local authorities in Scotland, has warned that plans from political parties to make changes to social care in Scotland are an "expensive distraction designed to gain short-term electoral advantage". Cosla warned that transferring social care from councils to the NHS could cost more than £300m.

Councillor Douglas Yates, COSLA's health and well-being spokesman, said: "In anyone's book, £300m to change the badge on a social care worker's shirt is not a good use of public money.
"There are huge challenges that we need to address but the national parties' plans to move social care into the NHS are an expensive distraction designed to gain short-term electoral advantage.

"The red tape that this will create would take years to unravel and force staff to spend that time sorting out structures and legal issues rather than delivering services to communities. And worst of all, there's no evidence that the public would end up with a better social care service.
 
What are the political parties saying?

The SNP are backing a lead commissioning model, involving councils and health boards working together to deliver social care in Scotland. Labour propose a National Care Service merging health and social care in one new service.
The Conservatives support the merger of the health and social care budgets, while Liberal Democrats are against centralisation of services.

Labour's health spokeswoman Jackie Baillie said her party's plans would end the "postcode lottery of care" facing older people in Scotland. " Too many older people fall in the gap between hospital and social work meaning they don't get the care they need and deserve. The current system is not fair, is not working and the status quo is simply no longer an option."
SNP Public Health Minister Shona Robison said the SNP's model for councils and health boards working together would improve services. She added: "Cosla are rightly critical of Labour's plans to create a new and expensive bureaucracy but what all parties recognise is we must improve services to meet the twin challenges of an ageing population and Westminster cuts to Scotland's budget. "Our lead commissioning model avoids the costs of Labour's bureaucracy whilst improving services. A re-elected SNP Government will work with the NHS, local authorities and Scotland's older people to provide the best possible care services for all older Scots."
Conservative health spokesman Murdo Fraser said the Tories have supported the merger of the health and social care budgets for a long time. He proposed the benefits of such a system to include faster response time to those in most need of care, and reduction the number of delayed discharges.
However, Liberal Democrat finance spokesman Jeremy Purvis said: "In stark contrast to the SNP and Labour, Liberal Democrats are determined to keep decision making for social work local. Cosla's warning of the £300m cost absolutely confirms the Lib Dem argument that centralisation is not only bad for delivering local services, but can cost hundreds of millions of pounds."

 An alternative reform

In response to the refrorms proposed, COSLA intends to instead promote an alternative vision for reform: an "outcomes focused approach" based on developing public services that are integrated at a local level. Their manifesto urges political parties "not to opt for a clumsy and disjointed restructuring of services", which could "lead to a weaker democracy in Scotland".
They have presented their argument to the Christie commission on the Future Delivery of Public Services, a commission established by the Scottish Government last year to develop recommendations for the future delivery of public services.

What is decided, remains to be seen... Could such a reform benefit vulnerable individuals in Scotland?