UK PM Andy Burnham vows to fix broken social care and ease NHS pressure

British Prime Minister Andy Burnham has vowed to fix the country’s “broken” social care system, saying reform is essential to ease pressure on the National Health Service.

In a BBC interview aired on Monday, one week after he took office, Burnham said he would devote his political capital to delivering substantial change.

“Whatever political capital I have, I will put into fixing broken social care and I would not want to leave office without having brought in the substantial change,” he said.

Unlike the publicly funded NHS, much of Britain’s social care for elderly and disabled people is privately provided.

Access to home and residential care is means-tested, while local authorities responsible for arranging services are struggling to meet rising demand from an ageing population.

Problems in the social care system also place pressure on NHS hospitals. Elderly and dependent patients can remain in hospital when suitable care is not available for them after discharge, contributing to shortages of beds and staff.

Burnham, whose father has Alzheimer’s, has campaigned for social care reform for years.

While serving as health secretary under Gordon Brown between 2009 and 2010, he proposed a publicly funded National Care Service that would be free at the point of use, similar to the NHS. The plans were not implemented.

Burnham said he would move “as quickly as I can” on reform but acknowledged that creating a new system would take time.

He also said Britain’s welfare bill needed to be reduced and suggested that some support could be made conditional on people taking opportunities to return to work.

His predecessor, Keir Starmer, attempted to reform welfare but scaled back the proposals following opposition from members of his own party.