Reform MPs complain that Farage was not invited to social care reform talks - but his resignation means he is unable to
The Reform UK leader hit out at Mr Burnham for ignoring his party which 'led over 300 national opinion polls and represents thousands of councillors and millions of Britons across the country'
Nigel Farage quit as MP for Clacton to stand in the ensuing by-election after questions mounted about a separate £5 million gift he received.
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Reform MPs are unhappy that Nigel Farage has not been invited to social care reform talks, but his resignation as MP means he would be unable to attend.
This comes as Andy Burnham is set to hold cross-party meetings in hopes of tackling the adult social care crisis, as he promised to “put everything I’ve got” into fixing the system.Both the new Prime Minister’s invitation “to build that spirit of collaboration from the start” was accepted by both the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats.However, the leader of Reform UK has hit out at Mr Burnham for ignoring his party, which he said, “led over 300 national opinion polls and represents thousands of councillors and millions of Britons across the country”.Mr Farage slated the Prime Minister’s “uniparty in action”, adding: “It’s now clear that Burnham is conspiring behind closed doors with the failed political establishment to foist further tax rises on the country.”Read more: Burnham pledges 'everything I've got' into fixing social care as he invites political rivals to work with him on issueRead more: Zack Polanski says he made ‘inadvertent mistake’ over Nigel Farage guillotine image but refuses to apologise
PM Andy Burnham has pledged to “put everything I’ve got” into fixing adult social care.
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However, due to Mr Farage’s resignation as MP at the end of June, he would not be able to attend the talks regardless.The Reform UK leader announced he would quit and trigger a by-election amid mounting pressure over unregistered donations of cash and support.He is facing a parliamentary standards investigation over a £5 million gift from Reform donor Christopher Harborne before becoming an MP, and a potential further probe after reports of undeclared funding for security and staffing in the year before he was elected, provided by long-term ally George Cottrell.
Due to Mr Farage’s resignation as MP at the end of June, he would not be able to attend the talks regardless.
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Andy Burnham has pledged to “put everything I’ve got” into fixing adult social care, as he extended an invite to party leaders to work with him to tackle the problem “head-on”.A spokesman for the Conservative Party said Ms Badenoch is unable to attend the meeting but that shadow health secretary Stuart Andrew will do so in her place.A party source criticised the short-notice invite, suggesting: “It’s almost like it’s only being done for show.”Sir Ed Davey confirmed later on X that he will attend the meeting via Zoom.Mr Burnham has previously stressed that, as Prime Minister, he wants to have “cross-party talks, to build that spirit of collaboration from the start” on the issue, while acknowledging that change would “take time”.He has also repeatedly vowed to expend “whatever political capital I have” on fixing the system, warning the NHS “will collapse” otherwise.
Mr Burnham has accused previous governments from shying away from the problems within the social care sector.
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Ahead of his speech in London on Wednesday, he insisted the time for “playing politics” on the issue is over, “when the human cost of that means carers struggling, families paying the price and our NHS buckling under the strain”.He said: “Last week I said we needed a different kind of politics: problem-solving, not point-scoring. Nowhere is that more urgent than social care.“For decades, governments have kicked this issue down the road because they’ve seen it as too risky, too difficult, and too complicated.“Politicians might have different views, but I’m serious about fixing this issue and to do that, we have to find common ground and listen to others to find a way forward.”He said reform of the sector “comes down to a choice”, adding: “We can carry on passing the problem to the next generation, or we can face it head-on and work together to build a care system that gives people dignity, security and the support they deserve.“This is about bringing back hope that we can finally fix the difficult issues that have been ignored for too long, and making Britain believe again.“That’s why I’m making this choice and I’m prepared to put everything I’ve got behind it.”
Mr Burnham has invited Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch (pictured) and Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey to meet with him on Wednesday to discuss the issue.
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It comes after the Government said there are “no plans” for a so-called “death tax” after reports Mr Burnham might seek to put forward plans he had previously put forward while he was health secretary in 2010.As part of the then-Labour government under Gordon Brown, Mr Burnham had suggested a levy to pay a proposed national care service could take 10% off people’s estates after they died.But the plans were scuppered by the Conservatives, who at the time accused Labour of levying a “death tax”.The compulsory levy was one of a range of options for paying for social care presented by Mr Burnham more than a decade ago, with alternatives including increased state funding out of general taxation and a voluntary contribution.Another option for funding reforms could be a new tax on income. According to The Telegraph, civil servants have presented a proposal that would force workers to make contributions to a privately managed fund which would pay for later life care.Options suggest that the new levy would be set at 1.8% of earnings above £6,240, which would be paid by workers over the age of 34.It has been suggested that this fund would be supplemented by wealthier elderly people - who would pay between 10 and 45% of their own costs depending on their assets.Mr Burnham has frequently cited his personal experience of the care system, as his father lives with Alzheimer’s in a care home.He has described as “not defensible” a system which can see people lose their homes and savings to pay for care.Mr Burnham is also said to be uneasy about the prospect of the new service being operated by large private sector providers on a for-profit basis.The Times has reported that the new PM wants to base the model around community-led services run by charities and local authorities."The model is going to be more like the NHS or the Live Well scheme he pioneered in Manchester rather than the system we have at the moment," a senior government source told The Times.On Wednesday, it is expected Baroness Louise Casey, who is leading a commission into social care, launched last year during Sir Keir Starmer’s premiership, will announce her so-called “Big Conversation on Care”, seeking public opinion on what a social care system should look like, what people should pay and what role the state should play to inform her major review.
