Corbyn challenges Theresa May over 'dementia tax'

Jeremy Corbyn has challenged Theresa May to reveal the impact of her controversial social care policy in the final days of the election campaign.

The Labour leader said it was "staggering" that pensioners had not been told at what level social care costs would be capped or how many elderly people would lose the winter fuel payment, worth up to £300.

Labour claims the Conservative plan to means-test winter fuel payments could affect up to 10.8 million pensioners, while people who need social care could face spending up to 42% of the value of their estates if the cap was set at £100,000.

Mr Corbyn said: "It is staggering that just six days from polling day millions of pensioners still don't know what's in store for them if they are unlucky enough to get dementia or any other condition that needs care in the home.

"The dementia tax is itself unfair but what's made matters even worse is the way Theresa May announced a cap and then failed to say how much it would be.

"Alongside this, older people face the additional uncertainty of not knowing who will be eligible for a winter fuel payment. The introduction of a means test could mean more than 10 million people losing the payment.

"Theresa May's only offer to pensioners is insecurity and cuts."

Under the Tory social care policy, the value of the family property will for the first time be taken into account when working out how much an individual must pay towards care in their own home, like with residential care.

The party would introduce a new guarantee that nobody's assets will be depleted below £100,000 because of care costs, more generous than the current floor of £23,250.

But after the changes attracted criticism and were dubbed a "dementia tax" by critics, Mrs May performed a u-turn and committed to a cap on the total costs people would face.

The level of the cap will be decided after the election.

Those receiving care at home will be able to defer payments until after they die, as residential care-users already can, so that they do not have to sell their home during their lifetime.