'We are being explicit that we're dropping it': What Tory ministers said about a care cap

Theresa May today announced the Conservatives would introduce an overall cap on care costs as part of their shake-up to social care. The Prime Minister said three times that "nothing has changed". Here is what top Tory ministers have been saying about a social care cap in recent days. 

Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt on the Today programme, 18 May.

“Yes [we are dropping the cap]. Not only are we dropping it but we are dropping it ahead of a general election and we’re being completely explicit in our manifesto that we’re dropping it and we’re dropping it because we’ve looked again at this proposal and we don’t think it’s fair. And the reason we don’t think it’s fair is you could have a situation where someone who owns a house worth £1m, £2m, has expensive care costs of, perhaps, £100,000 or £200,000 ends up under that proposal not having to pay those care costs because they’re capped and those costs get borne by taxpayers – families, younger families who are possibly themselves struggling to make ends meet – and we don’t think that’s fair on different generations.”

Work and Pensions Secretary Damian Green, in reference to the cap policy at the 2015 election. Andrew Marr Show, 21 May.  

“The policy as it is I think needs to be changed for two reasons. First of all we know that there are going to be two million more over 75s in ten years’ time, which is great, we’re all living longer, that’s good... We haven’t broken that promise [of a cap] because what we’ve done is devised a better system.”

Tory MP Dominic Raab on Sky News’ Ridge on Sunday, 21 May.

“The reassurance, the confidence we can provide is you’ll always have £100,000 to pass on to your family and that is an important principle that has to be balanced with another, two other important principles. First of all the principle that the better off can and should contribute to their own care and secondly that we need to protect precious taxpayers money.”

And Theresa May launching the Conservative Welsh manifesto today: 

“We have not changed the principles that we set out in the manifesto. We’re very clear about the principles on which this system will operate and will be based. What we have done is clarified that in the green paper, which will be a consultation document, we will have an absolute limit on the amount that people will pay for care. But the basic principles remain absolutely the same as when they were put in a manifesto and announced last week...

“Nothing has changed. Nothing has changed. We are offering a long-term solution for the sustainability of social care for the future. We are ensuring that older people will not have to worry; they will be able to ensure that their care – whether it’s in the home or for them to go into a home – is being paid for and they won’t have to worry about those bills month after month after month.

“And they will have the confidence of knowing that they will be able to pass £100,000 of their savings on to their children. Nothing has changed. We will consult on how the system operates and we will do that through a green paper.”