I am contacted by a growing number of people in Camberwell and Peckham who can’t get the quality social care their older relatives need. People come to me distraught, concerned that the care their vulnerable parent with dementia is getting is suffering due to cuts. One man told me that the poor and inconsistent standards of care have caused his 89-year-old mother such frustration and distress it has accelerated the decline in her health.

A decade of Tory cuts to local council budgets and a growing number of elderly people needing care has pushed care services to the brink and is causing thousands of people untold misery. Councils across the country are having to make impossibly difficult decisions about who receives care, there is currently a 122,000 national staffing shortfall and millions of people are left to cope at home, alone, without the support they need. Despite the brilliant efforts of staff, many vulnerable people are waiting longer for treatment and standards of care are not being delivered. And families are pushed to breaking point

The care you receive in your older years should not depend on your income. Quality social care must be a universally-available public service. Families across the country deserve peace of mind that their relatives will be safe and looked after. The measure of a society is how it treats its most vulnerable.

And if people can’t get the help they need at home or in the community they are more likely to go to A& E or their GP surgery, causing extra strain on already desperately stretched hospital and GP services.

It has now been almost 3 years since the Government promised a consultation on social care and 7 months since the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, stood on the steps of Downing Street and claimed he had a clear plan to fix the crisis in social care. But there is, as yet no plan?

The Government’s proposal this week to increase funding by £1 billion per year does not go anywhere near far enough. 1.5 million people are currently going without the support they need. The local Government Association estimates that by 2024 the funding gap will be £3.5bn.

Locally Southwark Council are working hard to help older residents and people with dementia stay safely in their own home, despite deep Tory cuts. The council has just announced it is building 50 extra care homes and a new day centre at Tayo Situ House in Peckham, named after the late Mayor of Southwark and dedicated Peckham Councillor, Tayo Situ. Extra Care homes are self-contained flats that allow people to live independently in their own homes, but with round the clock care support on site so there is help if they need it and so they  feel less isolated or alone. 

Tackling the crisis in social care is a priority for Labour. I’ve co-signed Helen Hayes MP’s Early Day Motion to demand the Government urgently brings forward proposals to Parliament so we can ensure everyone gets the support they need and can live with dignity in their old age. We are also pressing Ministers to invest in the social care workforce. Carers play a vital role in our society, yet they are often unappreciated and underpaid. We need to pay care workers a real living wage and develop a sustainable, cross-party solution, otherwise the 122,000 staff shortfall and the crisis in social care will grow and more older people and their families will suffer. 

A number of constituents have contacted me about the recent petition calling for those with British National (Overseas) passports to be granted full British citizenship.

I understand that individuals who were British Overseas Territories citizens by connection with Hong Kong were able to register as a BN(O) before 1 July 1997. 

In recognition of the fact that those with BN(O) status were at a disadvantage compared to those with other British nationalities, the then Government changed the law in 2009 to allow BN(O)s without another citizenship or nationality to apply to register as a British citizen under section 4B of the British Nationality Act 1981. Those with BN(O) status can also register as a British citizen if they have lived in the UK for five years and meet the residence requirements.

To grant all BN(O)s British citizenship would require a change in the law and the Government has said it has no plans to do so.

The Government has noted that the 2007 Review of Citizenship by Lord Goldsmith recognised that to automatically give BN(O)s full British citizenship would be a breach of the commitments made between China and the UK in the 1984 Joint Declaration on the future of Hong Kong.

The relationship between the people of the UK and the people of Hong Kong is built not only on the foundations of our history but on shared principles. The UK has a moral and a legal obligation to the people of Hong Kong and I therefore understand why the matter of British citizenship has been raised.

I am very concerned by the situation in Hong Kong and the erosion of compliance with the Joint Declaration that we have seen over recent years. The recent protests have rightly prompted serious reflection on the condition of democracy in Hong Kong more widely, and on the increasing crackdown on dissent and protest.

Unfortunately, I believe the UK Government has been too quiet on this issue and I think it should reassert to the Chinese Government its commitment to upholding the rights and freedoms of Hong Kong citizens that were guaranteed in the Joint Declaration. I hope the Prime Minister will also speak up and stand firm in defence of the Joint Declaration.

Thank you for your service Reverend Rose. Proud that you will be Church of England's first black woman bishop! Congratulations & best wishes!

#Trailblazer