Oral Answers to Questions

Liz Kendall Excerpts
Tuesday 6th June 2023

(1 year, 4 months ago)

Commons Chamber
Read Full debate Read Hansard Text Watch Debate Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Lindsay Hoyle Portrait Mr Speaker
- Hansard - - - Excerpts

I call the shadow Minister.

Liz Kendall Portrait Liz Kendall (Leicester West) (Lab)
- View Speech - Hansard - -

There is a particular group of women whose health needs should be highlighted during Carers Week: women who look after an older or disabled relative. The majority of unpaid carers in their 50s and 60s are women. Eight million unpaid carers have seen their own health suffer, with those providing high levels of care twice as likely to have poor health as people without caring responsibilities. So will the Minister finally commit to a cross-Government national carers strategy, including health issues in it, as the last Labour Government did? That is a key demand during this year’s Carers Week.

Maria Caulfield Portrait Maria Caulfield
- View Speech - Hansard - - - Excerpts

I thank the shadow Minister for her question. My colleague the Minister for Social Care is hosting an event today for carers, and £300 million for carers in the better care fund has also been released. I am a carer for my dad, who thankfully is well and spritely, so I understand the pressures of this. Recently, I met carers from Kinship; often they are grandparents, and older aunts and uncles, who look after young children. Work is going on between us and the Department for Education on how we can better support kinship carers, who do fantastic work in looking after young children. We fully recognise the issue, and the Social Care Minister is not just providing funding, but meeting those carers to see how we can better support them.