THE Conservative Party's huge lead over Labour has narrowed by five points to 12 per cent amid strong opposition to her so-called “dementia tax” bombshell revealed in her manifesto.
Theresa May claims making people fund care by paying after death is more fair - but top Tory figures fear “stealth tax” could eat into their vote.
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Theresa May gestures as she gives a speech at the launch of the Scottish manifesto yesterdayCredit: Getty Images
On Thursday she announced pensioners would pay for residential care or help in their own home from their homes, with their last £100,000 protected.
To fund the shake-up, the Conservatives will end winter fuel payments for those who can afford to pay it.
The £2 billion-a-year benefit will now be means-tested – in a victory for the Sun’s ‘Ditch Handouts for the Rich’ campaign.
But according to the latest Survation poll 47 per cent oppose Mrs May’s social care funding plans, with 28 per cent in favour.
And overall the Tories are now on 46 per cent, Labour on 34 and the Lib Dems on eight.
A separate poll from YouGov put the Tories on 44 per cent and Labour on 35 per cent - just a nine point gap.
Last week the average Tory poll lead was 17.
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Dementia suffers now face losing the chance to pass on their homes as well suffering from the cruel illnessCredit: Getty Images
Today Tory Work and Pensions Secretary Damian Green said the party would not rethink the plans to fund social care in England.
He said: "We have set out this policy, which we are not going to look at again."
But he did say there would be a consultation on the proposals.
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Theresa May has fiercely defended her plans for a social care shake-up from critics who said it would leave OAPs helplessCredit: PA:Press Association
One candidate standing for re-election said that it could be a disaster, reported The Times.
They said: "This plan was coming up on the doorstep this morning and there has not even yet been much coverage it.
"It is very hard to justify, because people with a house of £300,000 could have a liability now of £200,000.
"I thought the campaign was just right until this yesterday".
A former cabinet minister admitted that they were resorting to telling constituents that the plan was likely to be refined before it was put into practice, even though they had no knowledge that would happen.
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Jeremy Hunt said the new policy would help OAPs pass on £100,000 of their savings or assets to their childrenCredit: PA:Press Association
Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said on Thursday the shake-up meant everyone would know they can pass on £100,000 to their children.
The Tory said: “You could have a situation where someone who owns a house worth £1 million or £2 million, and has expensive care costs of perhaps £100,000 or £200,000, ends up not having to pay those care costs because they are capped.
“And those costs get borne by taxpayers and we don’t think that’s fair on different generations.”
The Demos think tank said that “hundreds of thousands of the poorest older people” will benefit from the shake-up.
But Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn branded it a “tax on dementia” given those who need long-term care could now run up mammoth bills.
And furious economist Sir Andrew Dilnot said the elderly would be left “completely on their own”. The grandee six years ago proposed a cap of £35,000 on the amount an individual would have to pay for their own care during their lifetime.
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Jeremy Corbyn has branded Theresa May's social care plan as a 'tax on dementia'Credit: Getty Images
Critics leapt on a change that will mean an estimated 670,000 people receiving care in their own home will face steeper bills.
Currently when a pensioner goes into residential care the value of their home is included in their assets – meaning the state can draw on the house equity once savings run out.
This rule will now also apply to so-called domiciliary care – care at home – for the first time. The Tories insisted that no one would be forced to sell their home outright while they are alive to pay for their care bill, or while a surviving partner lives in it.
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LBC callers said that this new social care policy convinced them to switch their votes away from the ToriesCredit: PA:Press Association
The National Pensioners Convention called it a “Frankenstein’s Monster of a plan” that still failed to tackle the crisis in social care.
Angry callers rang LBC to say they would now be switching their vote AWAY from the Conservatives.
Anna from Putney in South London said: “Theresa May has lost my vote now – It’s pure evil it’s definitely a death tax.”
But Claudia Wood, chief executive of Demos insisted it would ultimately be a positive move. She said: he Conservative manifesto pledges to change the means testing element of this – shifting the benchmark upwards so that those with assets worth more than £100,000 have to pay for all of their care.” Said Ms Wood.
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Sir Andrew Dilnot said that 'helpless' OAPs will be left on their own until they're down to their last £100,000 including their homesCredit: PA:Press Association
“This calculation includes the value of a person’s home, so the vast majority of home-owning older people will find they have to pay. This may seem unfair, but the current asset threshold is already very low (£23,250) – meaning not only all homeowners, but many social renters with modest retirement savings also have to pay for all of their residential care.
“The large jump in the threshold will means hundreds of thousands of the poorest older people will have access to partially or fully funded residential care for the first time.”
Challenged that the flagship reform was part of a “bleak” manifesto, the PM conceded there were “hard choices” she had been forced to make.
But she insisted: “If you look at what we’re doing, it’s the first time ever we have had a proper plan, a long-term plan for social care to ensure that old people have dignity in old age.
“And it’s a plan that’s fair across the generations.”
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