MPs have called on the incoming prime minister to bring forward reforms to adult social care, warning delay until the next general election could hinder progress.
In a new report, the Health and Social Care Committee said the government should confirm that Baroness Louise Casey’s Independent Commission on Adult Social Care can publish its work as soon as its ready.
The commission was launched in April 2025 to look at how adult social care in England could be improved.
Its first report, due later this year, will focus on improving productivity, prevention, and giving people more control over their care.
A second report, originally planned for 2028, is expected to set out longer-term changes.
But charities and organisations in the sector said that timeline is too slow. Care England warned the 2028 deadline risks delaying action in a sector already at breaking point, while the Royal College of Nursing argued vulnerable people cannot wait that long for change.
Committee chair Layla Moran MP said there were ‘no more excuses left’, urging the next prime minister to let Baroness Casey publish her findings as soon as they are available.
She warned against further delay, claiming it risks turning the issue into ‘another unedifying game of political football’.
The committee said about two million people aged 65 and over, and 1.5 million working-age adults, are not getting the care they need.
It also highlights concerns about the workforce, saying care workers are underpaid and twice as likely to be claiming benefits. Around 1.5 million unpaid carers are said to have worse health and often end up leaving work to care for loved ones.
During evidence sessions in June, Care Minister Stephen Kinnock said he disagreed with the previous government’s 2028 timetable and believed it should be ‘brought forward’.
He also revealed that the Treasury had been ‘very keen’ to enter the next election with a manifesto pledge on social care reform, rather than reaching agreement earlier, a move he said would make consensus harder to achieve.
The Committee noted that Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham has already indicated he would like the second phase of the work completed by the end of 2026.
Kinnock told MPs he hopes to ‘work at pace’ with the new prime minister to ensure Number 10, the Treasury, and the Department of Health and Social Care all treat the issue as urgent.
Demand for social care is only going to escalate. Separate research from the Centre for Ageing Better show in England, around 11 million people are aged 65 and over.
Against this backdrop, the committee warn that the closer the issue gets to election, the harder it becomes to build political agreement around reform.
Image: Age Cymru/UnSplash
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