COMMENT: Tory cuts are an assault on those who care for us

As home care and other cuts continue to seriously affect the most vulnerable members of society, remember that those most affected are often the people least able or likely to protest. That is why hundreds of thousands marched in London on March 26.

I was there also, following a period of personal protests at various offices - beginning my own protest at Care UK in Fleetwood, because I see our carers as victims of the cuts. As our care time is stolen, their hours go down.

Perhaps you know someone who has recently been told their care has been reduced or simply cut altogether. Some people can pay additionally for the care once regarded as part of their original care packages.

But this callous act has been compounded by the equally callous way the cuts are carried out. I received a short phone call to say my own domestic and shopping care was being taken - as was my mother's.

I cannot afford to pay extra to retain that support. But how do we explain that to our parents and other relatives or friends?

As a local councillor, I see beyond my own case and how many people locally are affected by cuts made by a faceless panel to which there is "no right of appeal."

The cuts will continue to steal from the vulnerable and if unchallenged, our often highly skilled carers, who allow and encourage us to live independently, will be a thing of the past.

Cllr Jack Harrison
Rossall Ward - Fleetwood

This comment originally appeared in the Morning Star on the 6th June