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Carers

This is the first time that I have had the pleasure of being in this forum when you have been in the Chair, Sir John. I have seen you in the Chair in other forums, and it is pleasure to serve under you today. This is also the first opportunity that I have had officially to congratulate my hon. Friend the Minister on his new position as the Minister with responsibility for disabled people, and to welcome him to that. I know about, and endorse, his commitment to the subject, and I shall say more about that later. I thank all those organisations and individuals who were summoned to provide evidence to the inquiry. Select Committees often forget the enormous burden that we place on people, particularly the voluntary sector, when requiring them to put together evidence to submit to us, and it is right to put that on the record. I particularly thank the Princess Royal Trust for Carers. We were fortunate to visit its carers' centre in Harrogate, which was an incredibly moving experience, especially our session with carers, one of whom was 17. We must remember that the number of child carers in this country is significant, and that involves considerable issues. I broadly thank the Government for their response to our report, but my hon. Friend will not be surprised that I take issue with some of it. I understand that today the National Audit Office published a report on carers, but I have not been able to obtain a copy—I do not know whether he is hiding them. Therefore, I am not sure what it says, but I am sure that it is constructive. I want to speak about three things: carer's allowance, information and advice, and employment and training for carers. My colleagues will also want to contribute to the debate. There are 4.5 million carers in this country, and it is estimated that they save the economy about £87 billion, so they are significant. As life expectancy increases, that number will increase significantly. It is hoped that medical advances, such as stem cell research, will ultimately provide cures for diseases such as Parkinson's and Alzheimer's, but as people live into their 80s and 90s, other issues will come to the fore—for example, osteoporosis. Our unsung army of carers will increase. That and social care are the two biggest issues facing the Government for years to come. In round terms, just under 500,000 people receive carer's allowance, and about 400,000 others are entitled to it but do not receive it, principally because of overlapping benefit rules. We all understand that, and the Select Committee did not recommend a change to those rules, but what must change is the three-page letter that goes to pensioners telling them that they are entitled to the allowance.