Lyons review: Make council tax fairer
Council tax is not ‘broken’ but does need to be made fairer, a government-commissioned review concluded today. As part of this reform, the government should consider re-valuing properties to make the rich pay more and the poor less, Sir Michael Lyons concluded as he published his three-year long study into local government finances. It recommends […]
Cameron bids for grey vote
David Cameron has called for a “profound cultural change” in the way society treats older people, warning Britain must adapt to its ageing population. The Conservative leader said older people should be given more opportunities to work, citing figures from Age Concern suggesting the economy could be boosted by £30 million by encouraging the over-50s […]
Home care services shake-up urged
Councils have been urged to rethink the way they provide home care for the elderly amid fears that services are too rushed and not properly tailored to people’s needs. The first ever inspection of home care in the UK today finds that although there are high levels of satisfaction with state-funded services, many older people […]
Alzheimer’s sufferers ‘denied drugs’
Thousands of people suffering from early stage Alzheimer’s will be denied drugs on the NHS following a ruling by the health watchdog today. Charities lost their appeal to the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (Nice) to make the £2.50-a-day anti-dementia drugs more widely available. The institute instead ruled that donepezil, rivastigmine and galantamine would only […]
Flu vaccine delays put elderly at risk
Fears that vulnerable people may have to wait for their free flu jabs were confirmed today after the government said that stockpiles of the vaccines had been delayed. The Department of Health (DoH) said that although there would be no shortage, there would be a delay in supply of this year’s 15.2 million doses of […]
Post office closures leave pensioners isolated
Pensioners risk having their “lifeline” cut unless the government reaches a decision on the future of the 8,000 rural post officers in Britain, Age Concern has warned. A report by the charity notes the 144 rural post offices that Royal Mail was forced to shut last year, and warns more are likely to be closed […]
Ageism laws ‘go unnoticed’
Millions of working Britons are unaware of new laws which come into force next week to tackle ageism, new research has found. Today’s report by the Employers Forum on Age (EFA), which surveyed 1,000 workers over the age of 16, claims discrimination against older and younger employees remains “rife” in the workplace. It found that […]
NHS hospitals ‘failing to tackle malnutrition’
Hundreds of thousands of older people are suffering from malnutrition in hospitals – partly because nurses do not have the time to help them eat, a new report warns. Research by charity Age Concern finds that four out of ten people aged over 65 admitted to hospital are malnourished, but the condition of many of […]
Pensioners ‘need property advice’
The government should provide pensioners with a telephone advice service to help them decide whether to sell their homes, a report published tomorrow will claim. Research from the Institute of Public Policy Research (IPPR) suggests that pensioners living in poverty could be helped off the breadline if they downsize their home or take out a […]
£2bn pensions credit still unclaimed
The government has insisted it is committed to increasing the take-up of the pensions credit after new figures show up to £2 billion still remains unclaimed. Figures from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) show the take-up of the credit has slowed down, and has admitted it is likely to miss its target of […]
