Liz Kendall MP, Labour’s Shadow Minister for Care and Older People, responding to today’s NHS England figures on delayed transfers of care, said:

“These figures are a stark illustration of the pressure that hospitals are under, and the crisis in care that has developed under David Cameron.

“The biggest reason for delayed discharges from hospital is the lack of NHS services in the community. This comes as no surprise, since 2,300 district nurses and community matrons have been lost since 2010.

“Delayed discharges due to a lack of social care in the home are at record levels. Fewer elderly people are now receiving the vital services that help them get up, washed, dressed and fed so they can stay living independently at home. This isn’t good for them and it’s a false economy too, as increasing numbers of frail elderly people are ending up trapped in more expensive hospital beds when they don’t need to be.

“Delayed discharges cost £247 million in the last year – money which could have paid for over 18.5 million hours of home care, or nearly 6,000 nurses.

“The choice is now clear: the NHS going backwards under the Tories, or Labour’s plans to join up health and social care so we get the best care for patients and the best value for taxpayers’ money.”