Mr. Ashley asked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will make a statement on the recommendations which bear on his responsibilities put forward in the National Council for Voluntary Organisations report "Crisis in Residential Care", a copy of which has been forwarded to him.

In that context, how does it help to penalise local authorities for things for which they are not responsible, such as the Crisis in Residential Care in some areas?

My Lords, when I was researching for this very important debate, amid all the statistics, press coverage and reports on the cliff-edge financial state of the sector and the impact of the spending review, the one figure that most stood out showing the frightening scale of the Crisis in Residential Care was the Care England figure of £2.