Burnham warns NHS will ‘collapse’ unless social care reformed

Getty/Daniel Megias

By PA Media reporters

The NHS will “collapse” unless action is taken to fix the social care system across England, Andy Burnham has said.

But the Prime Minister would not put a timeline on introducing care reforms, in his first major interview since he walked into No 10.

His comments came as an Age UK report warned that around 13,000 patients a day are medically fit for discharge but remain in hospital.

Burnham ruled out an early general election, and said Britain had to be “really serious as a country” in reducing the welfare bill.

Speaking to the BBC, Burnham said the NHS will never get back “to good waiting time standards until we fix social care”.

He added: “I can’t put a timeline on it right here, right now.

“If we don’t do it, the NHS will collapse under the weight of trying to care for people who’ve not really needed to end up in the NHS system.”