There is growing speculation that Thursday Autumn Statement could see the planned care reforms either be delayed, amended or cancelled altogether.
Having seen the reversal of the National Insurance increase which was supposed to fund changes to our care system and provide the means to reduce the NHS waiting lists it now seems the changes may fall victim to the need for the Chancellor to find savings in the Treasury budget.
This may be all the more likely given that many local authorities have expressed support for a delay of up to a year to give the sector time to prepare fully for their introduction, including by recruiting sufficient social workers to carry out the many thousands of additional assessments required.
The government had been reportedly planning a one-year delay, but reports in The Times, suggest that Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has pushed for this to be doubled.