Holyrood committee ‘increasingly concerned’ at lack of costings for care service

A Holyrood committee has repeated its concern about the lack of clarity on the costs of a National Care Service.

In a letter to newly-appointed social care minister Maree Todd, Finance and Public Administration Committee convener Kenneth Gibson said the MSPs are “becoming increasingly concerned” they have not yet seen a financial memorandum for the Bill.

The committee requested a financial memorandum in December, but is yet to receive the document.

The proposed care service would remove control of adult social care – and potentially other services – from local councils, giving the power to regional care boards.

But the Scottish Government’s plans have been criticised as a further centralisation of power, while a number of Holyrood committee have also raised concerns.

Opponents have criticised a perceived lack of detail, with the vast majority of plans behind the service to be outlined after the passage of the National Care Service (Scotland) Bill in a process dubbed “co-design”.

In a terse letter, SNP MSP Mr Gibson called for a financial memorandum to be provided to the committee by May 12, arguing the Government should not need to see the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee report into the Bill before the cost implications can be provided to his committee.

“We are becoming increasingly concerned at the lack of information available on the financial implications of the Bill and frustrated that we have still not received the updated financial memorandum we requested back in December last year, particularly given that the Scottish Government had argued that the original FM needed no amendment.” he wrote.

“We do not accept that the Scottish Government needs to wait until the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee published its report before it can provide an updated financial memorandum to this committee for scrutiny.

“Usually, the Finance and Public Administration Committee would feed into the lead committee, not the other way around.

“The committee therefore repeats its call for a revised financial memorandum, which takes into account the recommendations listed in our report of December 1, to be provided at the earliest opportunity, and no later than Friday May 12.”

The convener also requested a breakdown of spending thus far on the National Care Service and clarification of the timetable for the first parliamentary debate and vote on the Bill by the same deadline, and he invited Ms Todd to give evidence to the committee on May 23.