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Sir Keir Starmer questioned whether Boris Johnson was “okay” as he accused him of introducing a “working-class dementia tax” through this week’s reform to social care funding.
The Labour leader said the prime minister was fronting a “Covent Garden pickpocketing operation” over the reform that means only what individuals personally pay for their social care will contribute to the lifetime £86,000 cap.
It was pushed through the Commons by a small majority after a Tory rebellion but experts have said it will mean poorer people will take longer to reach the cap than wealthy individuals so would see more of their assets eaten up by care costs.
Raising the issue at Prime Minister’s Questions, Sir Keir said: “The only thing he is delivering is high taxes, high prices and low growth. I’m not sure the prime minister should be shouting about that.
“And it isn’t just broken promises, it’s also about fairness. Everyone needs protecting against massive health and care costs.
“But under his plan, someone with assets worth about £100,000 will lose almost everything yet somebody with assets of about £1 million will keep almost everything.”
After quizzing the prime minister a number of times on the issue, Sir Keir added: “It’s a classic con game. A Covent Garden pickpocketing operation. The prime minister is the frontman, distracting people with wild promises and panto speeches whilst his chancellor dips his hand in their pocket.”
And he asked: “How could he possibly have managed to devise a working-class dementia tax?”
The PM retorted that the social care plan “does more for working people up and down the country than Labour ever did”.
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Source : skynews
