MPs' lobby: Equal opportunities for carers

Hywel Francis wants more support for carers - do you?

The unpaid work done by the six million carers in the UK is worth the equivalent of spending on the NHS.

The latest research - carried out by the Carers UK charity and the Institute of Actuaries - estimates the value of carers' support at £57billion per year.

The MP for Aberavon, Hywel Francis, is presenting a private members' bill to promote the rights of and support for carers.

Do you think carers need more support? How can carers' rights be better promoted? How do you think the government can help people who look after friends or family members?

What the Carers (Equal Opportunities) Bill will do Provide carers with information about their rights Place a duty on local authorities to promote the health and well-being of carers Place a duty on social services to provide equal opportunities for carers in work and learning

We put your questions to Hywel Francis before he takes his bill to the House of Commons for a second reading on Friday 6 February.

You can watch the interview here:-

WATCH NOW

And the interview will also be broadcast by BBC Parliament on Sunday 1 February at 1845GMT and on Thursday 5 February at 2245GMT.

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The following comments reflect the balance of the opinions we have received:

When a disabled person moves from a family setting to a care home the patient's family should have a legal right to remain involved in the care decisions that affect the person.
David Cowes, Peterborough

Prisoners get more respect than carers June Tagg, Surrey

There has been no mention of carers in receipt of state pension getting a carers' allowance. We cannot retire and are sometimes ill ourselves. The closure of day care centres and care homes puts us under even more stress. Prisoners get more respect than carers and it is time things were changed and soon. Carers are fed up with being patronised and being shown no respect. I say pay all carers a proper wage after all we save billions of pounds.
June Tagg, Surrey

I think this bill is a great step forward. I would like to say that I think it is also important that carers get access to any training that would help them do what are often more than full-time jobs.
Tamsin, London

Many people do not realise they are carers. They see themselves as husbands, wives, or parents. A carer is seen as a paid attendant. Unless the people who come in contact with their relative or friend gives them the information and support they need, then all to often they will be forced to give up work, or struggle on without a break, and it takes a crisis to finally raise the authorities' awareness of their situation. Dr Francis' bill should be supported. Carers need to be given real opportunities, and should not be taken for granted.
Cari Hook, Northumberland

This city has recently changed the social services teams from general to specialised. We currently run with approx four social workers,yet requires 14! Will your bill help us in anyway? I can see that on the information side this bill would alert carers to a very severe problem.
Jill Jukes, Birmingham

Carers needs must be looked at with regard to their entire family situation, not just their caring role in isolation. One example is that, unlike tax-paying workers, carers are not entitled to any financial assistance with childcare fees even though they may care for 50+ hours per week (and desperately need that childcare). There is no provision for assistance within the current Carers Allowance. Will this bill place any duty on the government to reconsider their benefits system?
Karen, St Helens

I am a full time carer for my husband and an active volunteer care representative in North Somerset. Since I became a carer seven years ago the government has come to recognise their role and even has a dedicated webpage. This is a start and I welcome any bill that will promote help for carers. But it must be underpinned by a firm base of support and secure finances to make sure this happens.
Margaret Blackmore, North Somerset

I am a former carer and currently a trustee for a local 'Crossroads Caring for Carers' scheme, which is part of a national charity. I fully support the bill which is addressing issues for carers.
Audrey Nicholls, Pembury, Kent

I think that carers get the short end of the stick. My husband is my full-time carer, on-call 24/7 for £43 a week. This saves the government millions of pounds and what thanks do these salt-of-the-earth carers get? None - just a lot of abuse and no help. Carers should have more help and support without having to go cap in hand. They are treated terribly.
Verlie Thomas, Pwllheli

Many carers cannot make their benefits stretch far enough KM, Hull

What carers need, and deserve, is more money. Many carers cannot make their benefits stretch far enough to afford to take up the respite offered by social services for a financial contribution. Someone I know was asked to contribute £8 per hour for a social services carer for respite. If carers (and those cared for) cannot afford to contribute to and take up respite care, then an opportunity to promote the health and well-being of carers (via respite) is lost.
KM, Hull

My aunt was very gracefully looked after at home. Working and caring was a tedious process. Protest not to be in nursing home but cared for at home by loved ones in a friendly atmosphere with freedom.
S Sinna, Surrey

As a carer for my elderly parents for the last eight years I certainly believe carers' contributions to society often go unnoticed and unrewarded. This new bill is to be welcomed but from my experience the government should also be ensuring carers and those they care for have guaranteed rights to services from their GP. In my case neither of my parents got much help from their respective GPs and even when they were seriously ill and close to death it was often a battle to get a GP to visit. As a carer I found this situation desperately worrying and upsetting.
David Meredith, Doncaster

My wife had a heart attack and a stroke seven years ago and we both had to leave full-time employment. I have written to many MPs in the past about carers getting a raw deal from this government. We get minimum help and clearly save the government a great deal of money. As chairperson of my local carers' contact group I see just how demanding and committed carers have to be. I feel that Members of Parliament should take more interest in what carers do. It would be nice if someone could influence this uncaring government.
Peter Lake, Hinckley

Cutting costs by substituting lay persons for medically trained personnel is a false economy Gillian Spiller, Arizona

My father wore himself out by caring for my mother, who developed Alzheimer's. He was a very proud and independent person and would not accept help from social services or support groups. The upshot of this was that he collapsed and was admitted to hospital suffering a shingles infection, anaemia and total exhaustion. This resulted in my mother having to go into a nursing home at very short notice, which caused a tremendous amount of distress. I think there needs to be a great deal more awareness of what elderly people, in particular, go through when attempting to care for a sick spouse, and how best to offer the kind of practical help that doesn't make them feel threatened or a failure. My parents' GP did very little to help. Cutting costs by substituting lay persons for medically trained personnel is a false economy. It seems there is a serious misunderstanding about what is involved in the delivery of quality personal care to the frail and confused elderly patient.
Gillian Spiller, Arizona, US

I am my 81 year-old father's primarily carer. He is severely crippled with rheumatoid arthritis and unable to stand. I am away at work from 0800 GMT to 1600 GMT. The rest of the time - 15 or 16 hours a day, 24 hours at weekends - I am with him, he can only be left on his own for short periods. I am often called out at night to tend him. This sometimes involves changing sheets because he has wet his bed. Although I must be saving the state a lot of money by looking after him I can claim no remuneration as I am working. Is this fair? My brother drives 16 miles and back to be with him whilst I am at work.
Barry Jonathan Black, Chichester

There is presently no support in society for people who are thrown into this role of caring for ill relatives. I would hope in the future that there will be financial support available. Employers should also be more supportive about the wider responsibilities of some individuals. Presently many carers would not even recognise themselves as such and feel it is an obligation of family responsibility. I hope views progress as I think we are still in the dark ages on this one. I certainly don't think the words equal opportunities and carers are words that go together at the moment.
Kate Vickers, Hammersmith

As a carer for someone with a severe mental illness for some 16 years, I feel that there is definitely a lot of work to be done in the area of looking after and supporting carers. I was often in the position of looking after my wife at home because no beds were available in hospital, yet there were no more than the most rudimentary backup available if a crisis arose and I was not permitted to discuss anything regarding her situation with the team, on grounds of "medical confidentiality". But I wonder if Mr Francis' bill is going to achieve anything. It was pretty clear to me that much of the trouble I was having was because the system was under-resourced, and constantly at breaking point. Psychiatric healthcare appears to be in crisis and there is little evidence of any kind of co-ordinated long-term approach. Sadly, my wife and I are now separated but she has been receiving much better support from the health authorities. I can only assume that my presence was something of an "easy option" for them before that.
Steve, London

As a Senior Support Worker for younger disabled adults in a residential home I heartily support Hywel Francis's bill. One of the main problems, is the desperate attempt to cut hospital waiting lists meaning patients are being discharged earlier than ever before without providing short-term post-operative care for those unable to care for themselves and not cared for by family members, or long-term care for those with progressive disabilities. I would like to ask Mr Francis if he supports ring-fencing of local authority social services departmental budgets to prevent cash earmarked for community care being expended on other services.
Christopher Luke, Tunbridge Wells

I am all in favour of giving carers more support but it would be a good start if current legislation - such as the Community Care Act - was enforced. There are glaring holes in the caring system. In my area social services evade responsibility for providing support because they don't have enough occupational therapists. Generally there is a lack of resources at social services level and complacency at delivery level. These factors are well known to politicians and carers alike. I wonder if placing a duty on social services to provide better caring support will be backed up by adequate funding. Or will this just be a paper-based exercise where evasion of responsibilities cannot be challenged due to complicated rules and regulations? I hope whatever laws are passed to assist carers due regard is given to time-scales involved in providing such support
Michael Ryan, Merseyside

I'd like to see a national council for carers formed Steven Gorman, Gateshead

I'd like to see a national council for carers formed, which in turn could oversee the opening of and support for smaller local groups, and the introduction of a free advisory helpline. I would also ask for the reimbursement for transportation costs incurred by carers and the introduction of free prescriptions for all carers.
Steven Gorman, Gateshead

Unpaid Carers save the country huge sums in the provision of care for the disabled, sick and elderly and deserve every support that can possibly be provided.
D J Jackson, Penge

Carers who look after someone 24 hours a day for 365 days a year must find £300/400 to place the person needing care in a home so they can take a week's holiday from their caring function. Why can't central or local government fund this on a one week per year per carer basis to allow the carer some time off without having to find this cost?
John Rew, Nairn

I think this is a good opportunity to redress the bad laws in the world.
Shaukat Ali, Bhakkar, Pakistan

At a time when we are increasingly being told that we must make our own provision for pensions and build up our own pot of money, isn't it about time that carers were paid a proper, living wage by the government or else given realistic pension credits (not just NI credits)?
Kate Corwyn, Bristol