Clause 48 will be debated in Parliament tomorrow

A quick explanation about why people should sign the Clause 48 petition:

“Imagine two older people who live next to each other in a care home – one pays for their own care, the other’s is arranged by their council. Did you know that there is a loophole that means that only one of these people has full protection of the law from abuse and neglect?

In the current situation, the Human Rights Act only applies to those people who have their care arranged by a public body. Anyone who pays for their own care in a residential setting or receives care in their own home is not directly covered by the Human Rights Act. That means if they experience abuse or neglect, they have fewer rights. We think this is wrong.

The House of Lords made the right decision to amend the Care Bill to close this loophole once and for all. Clause 48 provides equal protection for all older and disabled people receiving care.

But the Government opposes this and is trying to scrap Clause 48 from the Care Bill. They believe that such a clause is unnecessary and confusing, even though leading lawyers disagree.

Everyone who receives care services should be protected from abuses of their rights, regardless of how that care was arranged.”


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