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Care levy may hit estates by 10%
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A levy to pay for the Government's proposed National Care Service could take 10% off people's estates after they died, Health Secretary Andy Burnham has suggested.
The Government has already ruled out a flat-rate £20,000 levy on estates - branded a "death tax" by Conservatives - to pay for social care for the elderly in England.
But Mr Burnham made clear that a compulsory levy based on a percentage of the value of an estate remains under active consideration and he suggested 10% as a possible level for the tax.
However, he insisted this was not yet Government policy, telling a conference hosted by Age Concern and Help the Aged: "This is just an option. We are still debating the options."
The compulsory levy was one of a range of options for paying for social care set out in Mr Burnham's green paper in July last year, with alternatives including increased state funding out of general taxation and a voluntary contribution.
The proposed reforms are designed to end the current lottery under which some people lose their homes and life savings if they spend lengthy periods in residential care.
Mr Burnham is expected to announce the Government's preferred option in a White Paper within weeks, and on Thursday appeared to indicate he favoured the compulsory route.
Paying for care for the elderly out of general taxation is not "fair to the working-age population", he told the conference, broadcast on Channel 4 on Wednesday night. And a voluntary levy would be "more expensive", costing those who opted to contribute an estimated £25,000 each.
He said that the "acid test" of any solution would be that it avoids anyone having to sell their home in order to pay for care in their old age - something which is unlikely to be delivered by a voluntary scheme.
Conservatives proposed a voluntary insurance scheme, costing around £8,000 to be paid when an individual reaches retirement age.
