Eastwood MSP, Jackson Carlaw is calling on Councillors in East Renfrewshire to reject proposals to charge vulnerable people for non-residential care services and for the final decision to be made at Full Council.
The council’s Cabinet Committee is scheduled to meet on Thursday 6th February to vote on the plans to introduce a £20 per hour charge for non-residential care support, subject to the ability to pay and with the recommendation that councillors approve the policy.
If the plans are agreed, the charging will be introduced in July.
Only 4 out of a total of 18 Councillors in East Renfrewshire are members of the Cabinet Committee.
The Eastwood MSP has written to all Councillors in East Renfrewshire to request that the report on the non-residential care charges is instead brought to a meeting of the Full Council where every elected member of the local authority will be present.
He has said the options could include adding the report to the agenda for the 2025/26 budget setting meeting to take place in the next few weeks or for a special Full Council to be convened with the care charging policy the sole item of business.
In the letter, Mr Carlaw has also clearly articulated his opposition to the charging plans.
Scottish Conservative MSP for Eastwood, Jackson Carlaw said:
“I have received a very high volume of communications from the loved ones of vulnerable people who will be negatively impacted by the council’s charging proposal if it is implemented.
“I understand that when council services have already sustained very significant cuts over the previous decade because of the continued derisory treatment of local government in Scotland, there are fewer and more challenging options to consider each year.
“However, the personal testimonies of how detrimental the charging will be for vulnerable residents and with local people who have very complex needs set to lose a large portion of their income to pay for non-residential care, it is clear that this proposal should be rejected.
“The decision on whether or not to agree such a monumental change to care services for vulnerable people in East Renfrewshire should involve all councillors and with the vote brought to Full Council.
“When reading the correspondence from constituents and speaking to family members in person, there is no doubt that the intent to charge for non-residential care services has caused considerable distress and as Eastwood’s MSP, I am firmly opposed to the policy.”
