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Paul Brand

@PaulBrandITV

25 Nov

BREAKING: Home Secretary says she has asked France once again to allow joint patrols on French beaches to do “absolutely whatever is necessary to secure the area”.

Yesterday’s deaths were a “shock, but not a surprise” she says.

Effort must be focused on “smashing” traffickers.

Priti Patel insists she is not heartless.

“We are not working to end these crossings because we don’t care or are heartless. The UK has a clear and a generous and a humane approach” she insists. But people “must come here legally”.

Home Secretary is essentially making three arguments here:

1. The first problem is smugglers

2. The second problem is France

3. The solution is international cooperation and the government’s tougher measures contained in the Nationality and Borders Bill.

Read 9 tweets

Paul Brand

@PaulBrandITV

12 Oct

@skillsforcare

BREAKING: The number of carers is falling in England for the first time.

Not only are over 100k roles vacant, but carers are now leaving faster than they can be replaced, according to @skillsforcare.

Fits with what we've been reporting for months 👇

itv.com/news/2021-09-0…

This matters hugely because care providers no longer have enough staff to look after clients.

Around a third of providers are handing contracts back, ie stopping care.

That leaves some vulnerable people waiting months for another provider, going without the most basic needs.

There is also a huge knock-on for the NHS, because the care sector is vital in helping people out of hospital and back to their own homes / care homes.

Several hospitals have already said they are struggling to discharge patients because there is no care for them outside.

Read 7 tweets

Paul Brand

@PaulBrandITV

9 Sep

NEW: Oxfordshire hospitals are said to be in a "critical position" tonight due to surging demand and an inability to discharge patients back into the community due to a shortage of care staff.

John Radcliffe hospital has had no space for 24 hours and cannot offload ambulances.

Hospital is currently in Opel 4 (highest level of alert). They say 20 people arriving per hour is usually considered bad, but they are receiving 30-40 per hour.

There is no ITU capacity and all elective surgery has been cancelled. Situation said to be similar across the region.

An urgent appeal has gone out to care providers to help with discharging patients. But as we reported last week, providers are at full capacity due to staff shortages. In fact, 30% are handing clients back because they can no longer care for them. All increases pressure on NHS.

Read 4 tweets

Paul Brand

@PaulBrandITV

9 Sep

BREAKING: The government is today launching a consultation on making Covid-19 and flu vaccinations compulsory for *all* health and social care workers.

Care home staff must already be Covid jabbed by 11th November. Now this could extend to NHS staff and carers in the community.

Care sector is already facing its most chronic staffing crisis in history. Care homes expect thousands to quit due to compulsory jabs. Now they might not be able to move to NHS to escape the jab, but care in the community has been really worried about this coming in for them too.

For many it will be inexplicable why anyone in a health / care role would refuse a vaccine. Vast majority - 92% of NHS staff - have had first dose. But fact of the matter is some still don’t want it.

When care sector is already stretched, they can’t afford for anyone to leave.

Read 4 tweets

Paul Brand

@PaulBrandITV

7 Sep

THREAD: This is complicated but v important.

At the moment there are two types of care clients - those who are funded by state (council) and those who fund themselves privately.

Private clients have always paid more than councils do. Providers need that subsidy to survive. 1/4

But today the government brought into force legislation which will allow private clients to ask councils to arrange their care for them instead, at the cheaper council rate.

Great for private clients, dreadful for providers. 2/4

The stark matter is some councils essentially pay under the rate providers need just to break even. Without private clients topping up, those providers will go under. Many already are. And no chance of a wage rise for staff if margins are cut even more (currently about 2%). 3/4

Read 9 tweets

Paul Brand

@PaulBrandITV

7 Sep

BREAKING: I understand care plan is as follows…

1. Cap of £86k
2. Floor of £100k
3. 1.25% hike NI
4. Raises £36bn
5. BUT vast majority goes to NHS. Only £5.4bn for care.
6. Of that £5.4bn, £2.5bn funds care cap. Leaves £2.9bn over 3 years for reform. Care leaders furious.

Care sector was briefed on the plan this morning. They say there’ll also be an extra £500m for workforce training but worry this will do nothing to raise wages, which they feel is the main factor behind the staffing crisis.

“Feeling depressed”, one source tells me.

Bit more detail on £100k floor:

Not quite a floor as costs will be tapered between £20k-100k so individual still contributes but state helps.

But main reaction from care sector is about overall funding here - falls way short of what they feel they need and seems more about NHS.

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