Investing in the Future of Social Care

That the Parliament thanks all those who work in the social care sector for their dedication, but believes that they have been undervalued for years; acknowledges that there is a shortage of staff working throughout social care; believes that this shortage is impacting the waiting times of those who require care packages and leading to year-on-year increases in delayed discharges, which the Scottish Government promised to eradicate within a year in 2015, contributing to the crisis in the NHS, and calls on the Scottish Government and its social care partners to reward staff with better pay, conditions and career progression, backed by the introduction of powerful national bargaining beginning in 2023-24, the acceleration of new national standards and entitlements for users, and the abolition of the SNP-Scottish Green Party administration’s plans for a National Care Service, which will not address the problems, will consume considerable staff time, and will cut the funds available for social care.