The Liberal Democrats will promise a £9bn package “to save health and care services” in their election manifesto. The party said its plans for government would be funded by reversing tax cuts for banks and closing tax loopholes exploited by the wealthiest individuals. It says the NHS and social care will be “at the heart” of the party’s manifesto, which is being launched later on Monday.The party’s plans if it wins power include giving everyone the right to see a GP within seven days, as well as free personal care for older or disabled people at home. Health is devolved so the pledges only cover England. Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, deputy leader Daisy Cooper said: “The only way we get economic growth is if we have a healthy population.”At the moment we have people that are out of work because they’re on waiting lists and other people who can’t work because they’re picking up the pieces of a broken social care system.”She added the party would not raise income tax, national insurance or VAT, saying that during a cost of living crisis it would be “absolutely the wrong thing to do to increase taxes on struggling families”.Leader Sir Ed Davey, who has spoken about his experience of being a carer for his disabled son and previously caring for his mother – who died of cancer when he was a teenager – has made carers central to his party’s campaign. The Lib Dems say their manifesto will be the first in the party’s history to include a dedicated chapter on care. On Sunday, the party announced it would include a pledge to increase the Carer’s Allowance, available to people who look after someone with an illness or disability for at least 35 hours a week, by £20 a week.They said they would also raise the eligibility threshold for the allowance to those earning less th …
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[mwai_chat context=”Let’s have a discussion about this article:nnThe Liberal Democrats will promise a £9bn package “to save health and care services” in their election manifesto. The party said its plans for government would be funded by reversing tax cuts for banks and closing tax loopholes exploited by the wealthiest individuals. It says the NHS and social care will be “at the heart” of the party’s manifesto, which is being launched later on Monday.The party’s plans if it wins power include giving everyone the right to see a GP within seven days, as well as free personal care for older or disabled people at home. Health is devolved so the pledges only cover England. Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, deputy leader Daisy Cooper said: “The only way we get economic growth is if we have a healthy population.”At the moment we have people that are out of work because they’re on waiting lists and other people who can’t work because they’re picking up the pieces of a broken social care system.”She added the party would not raise income tax, national insurance or VAT, saying that during a cost of living crisis it would be “absolutely the wrong thing to do to increase taxes on struggling families”.Leader Sir Ed Davey, who has spoken about his experience of being a carer for his disabled son and previously caring for his mother – who died of cancer when he was a teenager – has made carers central to his party’s campaign. The Lib Dems say their manifesto will be the first in the party’s history to include a dedicated chapter on care. On Sunday, the party announced it would include a pledge to increase the Carer’s Allowance, available to people who look after someone with an illness or disability for at least 35 hours a week, by £20 a week.They said they would also raise the eligibility threshold for the allowance to those earning less th …nnDiscussion:nn” ai_name=”RocketNews AI: ” start_sentence=”Can I tell you more about this article?” text_input_placeholder=”Type ‘Yes'”]
