Personal Care at Home Bill

My Lords, I thank all the noble Lords who have spoken. This whole situation is very complex. One of the most complex things is that the people who have the highest personal care needs are going to be the ones that get it free. However, what happens to those who may not have the highest needs? Do they get nothing? I can see local authorities saying, "We haven’t got any more money, so you can’t have any help". What worries me tremendously when I think of people who may be diagnosed with motor neurone disease is the slowness of assessments. They need quick assessments and quick help and they sometimes do not get it. I would like to discuss this whole matter with Members such as my noble friend Lord Sutherland, who is an expert on these things, and with other noble Lords so that we can get something satisfactory written into this Bill to avoid confusion, because I am sure that there will be confusion—indeed, there is already a lot of confusion about this whole Bill. This issue needs looking at in depth. This afternoon has been useful, but it shows how difficult the whole situation is. A growing army of people are becoming more elderly and more disabled and need help. I will read carefully what the Minister has said and maybe come back on Report. I beg leave to withdraw the amendment. Amendment 3 withdrawn. House resumed. Amendment 4 not moved. Amendment 5 Moved by