Stop pretending social care is free, make everyone pay their proper share into a separate fund

We need a proper system for social care, not just kicking the can down the road and hoping for the best. My proposal is a dedicated Social Care Contribution. This would be a small, flat percentage added to everyone's National Insurance contributions while they are working. On top of that, there should be a deferred charge on property, paid when assets are sold or passed on after someone has needed care.

People are living longer, which is great, but it also means more people need help in their later years. I see it with my customers all the time, folks struggling to manage their homes or needing someone to look in on them. At the minute, families are either getting stung with massive bills or the care just isn't there. This isn't fair on anyone, and it’s not sustainable if we want people to get decent care when they need it.