PAUL Burstow, former minister of state, was the guest speaker at a pasty and politics event held in Clearbrook earlier this month.

Mr Burstow, who was minister for care in the community between 2010 and 2012, told those who attended the event in the village hall that the creation of the NHS had been a considerable achievement — but social care had been 'left behind'.

He said: 'The quality of care that people get has remained a postcode lottery.

'Depending on the decisions of the local council, the support you get in old age may be good or may be bad.

'According to opinion polls, care of older people is now in third place in people's lists of concerns.

'As a population, we are living longer and needing more care. But we also need to change the idea of the purpose of social care – to focus on prevention and well-being, rather than crisis management. '

Mr Burstow said the Government's new Care and Support Bill was now in draft form, and was currently up for consultation.

His talk was followed by a lively question and answer session.