The Labour leader attacked what he described as a rigged system where power is in the wrong hands, and accused the government of slashing taxes for the richest and lining the pockets of their friends while cutting vital public services.
Addressing the Fabian Society new year conference in his second major speech of 2017, Corbyn said the social care system was at serious risk of breakdown unless more money was invested by the state.
He said cuts of £4.6bn over the course of the last parliament created a “social care crisis made in Downing Street”.
Care homes have faced rising costs and falling fee payments from councils, and figures from the Care Quality Commission showed that one in five nursing homes does not have enough staff to ensure adequate and safe care for residents.
“They’ve told councils to fill the gap by raising council tax that won’t even meet 3% of what councils are already spending on social care for the elderly,” Corbyn said. “They’re passing the buck to councils, shifting the blame and handing you the bill.”
As part of his much-anticipated “relaunch” as a champion of the people and anti-establishment insurgent, the Labour leader accused Theresa May of using overstretched GPs as scapegoats for the NHS crisis. Family doctors and medical leaders rejected the prime minister’s demand to move to a seven-day week and extend opening hours at GP surgeries. Senior doctors have said the move could lead to mass resignations.
Corbyn said: “The prime minister tells us … the reason we have a crisis in the NHS is not because her government has slashed billions from social care budgets and underfunded our health service. No. She’s told her No 10 advisers to tell the media the real people to blame are the hard-pressed and under-pressure GPs.”
At the end of a week in which his leadership has come under fresh attack, Corbyn accused the Conservatives of slashing taxes for the richest – by another £70bn by 2022 – while cutting pay for the rest.
“They’ve sold off our country’s assets and handed over public services to be milked by tax dodgers,” he said. “The truth is the system simply doesn’t work for most people. Labour under my leadership stands for a complete break with this rigged system.”
