Government urged to help carers

A committee of MPs has said that the Government must give more financial support to carers. The Commons work and pensions committee said the six million people in the UK who looked after friends and relatives last year saved the taxpayer £87bn, and recommended an income replacement scheme for those who were forced to stop working to give care.

The MPs said they were "disappointed" that the Government's recent Carers Strategy, launched last year, had not included any plans to offer direct financial assistance.

The committee's chairman, Labour MP Terry Rooney, said: "Caring matters deeply to individuals, families and society in general.

"Sustaining the ability of carers to provide the care and support they give to others is of critical importance."