Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask His Majesty's Government, in regard to the report by Alzheimer's Society, The economic impact of dementia, published in May 2024, what assessment they have made of the estimates that (1) the total cost of dementia to the UK in 2024 was £42.5 billion, and (2) unpaid care accounted for £21.1 billion of that cost.

Department officials have previously considered these estimates, made by the Carnall Farrar consultancy on behalf of the Alzheimer’s Society, alongside other estimates and research into the economic and social impacts of dementia in the United Kingdom.

The cost of supporting older adults with dementia in England in 2025 has been estimated to be approximately £40 billion, in 2015 prices, as this cost would be higher if inflation is taken into account. This includes all individual, Government, and economic costs of health and care consumed by these adults, and it is reasonable to assume that some of these costs would be incurred even if their dementia had been prevented. This total cost has been projected to increase to approximately £80 billion in 2040.

We will deliver the first ever Frailty and Dementia Modern Service Framework to deliver rapid and significant improvements in quality of care and productivity. This will be informed by phase one of the independent commission into adult social care, which is expected this year.

The Frailty and Dementia Modern Service Framework will seek to reduce unwarranted variation and narrow inequality for those living with dementia and will set national standards for dementia care and redirect National Health Service priorities to provide the best possible care and support.