Boris Johnson has briefed his Cabinet on plans to reform health and care funding, which are expected to tear up Tory manifesto commitments.
The Prime Minister will set out in the Commons later how he aims to tackle the social care crisis in England, with the risk of a Tory backlash if he raises National Insurance to pay for the reforms.
The tax hike, thought to be about 1.25 percentage points, will raise around £10 billion, which will be spent on the NHS as it recovers from the Covid-19 pandemic as well as to help people avoid crippling adult social care costs.
Cabinet ministers returned to Downing Street for a face-to-face meeting for the first time in 2021, with many around the table concerned about breaking a general election promise not to raise National Insurance.
Downing Street hopes to present the package as an attempt to help the NHS clear backlogs, as well as resolve long-standing issues around care costs.
No 10 said a lack of integration between the two often sees people “stuck in the wrong care setting, and families worry about meeting the costs of care if they leave NHS provision”.
And Downing Street described as “unfair and often catastrophic” the situation where someone who has dementia may have to pay for their care in full, while someone cared for by the NHS would receive care for free.
It said one in seven people now pays more than £100,000 for their care, and said the system can lead to “spiralling costs and the complete liquidation of someone’s assets”.
Under current arrangements, anyone with assets over £23,350 pays for their care in full, but No 10 said the costs were “catastrophic and often unpredictable”.
It has not gone down well with a large cross-section of people from all sides of the political divide, here are some of the most franks reactions
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Conservative leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith told The Telegraph the plans were a “sham” because they did not reform the social care system.
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Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said: “Boris Johnson gave voters a cast iron guarantee that he would not raise National Insurance – and now he’s breaking voters’ trust again.
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Related: WATCH: Flashback to when Boris Johnson ‘guaranteed’ there would be no tax hikes
