§ Mr. O'HaraTo ask the Secretary of State for Health (1) if he will amend the Assessment of Resources Regulations 1992 to include a mandatory disregard of property in situations where a carer who is aged under 60 or is not a relative of the person he is caring for remains in the property of that person when that person moves into a care home; [57018]
(2) if he will use the additional funds announced in the Budget for social care to make mandatory the discretionary disregard for carers who remain in the property of the person they are caring for when that person requires care in a care home. [57019]
§ Jacqui SmithDuring the passage of the Health and Social Care Act 2001 through Parliament, Ministers gave a commitment to review the need for a mandatory property disregard in situations where former carers, not already covered under the current Assessment of Resources Regulations 1992, continue to live in properties of individuals permanently admitted to residential care. Ministers emphasised that progress could only be made should resources become available.
318W For the time being the Government are aware that many properties of care home residents are disregarded by statute from the financial assessment for residential accommodation because they continue to be the main home of spouses and other family members listed in the regulations. In many instances these individuals will have cared for the residents prior to admission. Additionally many councils use their discretion to disregard the value of residents' property from the financial assessment when it continues to be the home of carers not covered by the regulations.