Tory social care ‘poll tax’ will only help the wealthy says Lamb  

The figures, released ahead of tomorrow's cross-party social care conference, undermine Conservative claims that their plans would enable older people to pass their homes on to their children as two thirds of pensioner households would have to sell or release equity from their homes to pay for the private insurance scheme. The figures reveal that: 63% of pensioner couple households (1.4m) do not have non-housing assets of £16,000 (cost of insurance to cover both pensioners) 71% of single female pensioner households (1.6m) do not have non-housing assets of £8,000 64% of single male pensioner households (600,000) do not have non-housing assets of £8,000 Commenting, Liberal Democrat Shadow Health Secretary, Norman Lamb said:   “The reality is that Conservative social care plans are unworkable, unfair and unaffordable for the majority of pensioners...