§ Mr. RookerTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will issue guidance requiring local authorities to disregard attendance allowance when determining charges for personal social services.
§ Mrs. Virginia Bottomley[holding answer 26 November 1991]: Local authorities have discretionary powers to charge for domiciliary and day-care services. If charges are made authorities must take into account what it is reasonably practicable for an individual to pay. It is proposed to issue guidance to authorities about the use of these powers.
The Government's view is that the full economic cost of providing a service should be recovered where this can be done without causing hardship to the service user.