On 10 June, the Care Reform (Scotland) Bill was passed. This briefing gives an overview of its provisions.
The Act contains what is left of the National Care Service Bill after the government abandoned its plans for a National Care Service at the start of this year (see Briefing 150).
Sections on fair work, ethical commissioning and procurement and sectoral bargaining in social care have been added, together with parts on needs assessment and market monitoring. The core parts of the original Bill, to do with creating a National Care Service, were deleted and, to reflect this, the bill was re-named. Most of the provisions will not come into force until regulations/secondary legislation are introduced.
While it contains some widely supported measures for carers and care home residents, the bill largely tinkers around the edges. It does not address the underlying reasons for social services being on their knees.
The escalating budget shortfalls in local authorities and IJBs are responsible for the rationing of social care and the closure and withdrawal of services across Scotland. The financial costs of many of this bill’s provisions remained unknown or unclear when Parliament’s Finance Committee held its final scrutiny session on 27 May. The full implications of the new duties on local authorities will only be understood once the regulations are brought forward but, for the aims to be met, Government must fully fund these.