Auto-enrolment scheme could help fund social care, says former pensions minister
The plan would automatically enroll taxpayers 40 and over, with 11 million people already brought into pension saving since 2012.
- Former Liberal Democrat pensions minister Sir Steve Webb proposed a new "social insurance" model for England that would automatically enroll taxpayers aged 40 and over into a social care premium, with an opt-out option available.
- Current social care funding leaves individuals at risk of "catastrophic" costs that could wipe out life savings. Sir Steve argued this approach mirrors the successful workplace pension auto-enrolment policy that has brought more than 11 million people into savings since 2012.
- Participants build up a discount on future personal care costs by paying the premium, with the discount increasing each year. Someone remaining in the system for 25 years would be fully exempt from contributing towards their personal care expenses.
- This model emerges alongside Prime Minister Andy Burnham's separate plans to adjust the state pension Triple Lock to fund a new National Care Service. Experts suggest either the Triple Lock or alternative funding models must change to address an ageing population.
- These proposals remain a suggested model rather than existing Government policy. Dr. Jonathan Pearson-Stuttard of LCP Health stated the framework aims to "generate early funding to invest in keeping people healthier and independent for longer," easing pressure on public services.
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Andy Burnham urged to raise income tax on over-40s to fund social care
Andy Burnham urged to raise income tax on over-40s to fund social care . Millions of people aged 40 and over could pay an average of £31 a month towards social care under a new proposal designed to protect families from large bills later in life
Evening Standard
Auto-enrolment scheme could help fund social care, says former pensions minister
A similar approach to workplace pension saving could be used to help solve the ‘thorny problem’ of social care funding, Sir Steve Webb said.
Steve Webb: What auto-enrolment can teach us about social care
Most of the risks in our lives can be pooled with other people. Whether it is the risk of our car being written off in an accident, our house burning down Most of the risks in our lives can be pooled with other people. But there is one risk that can potentially wipe out a lifetime of saving and the value of our family home, and which is largely uninsurable. This is the risk of ‘catastrophic’ care costs
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