| Law Lords leave elderly out in cold
Families with relatives in care suffered a blow this week when the House of Lords ruled that human rights legislation did not protect the elderly or vulnerable placed by local authorities in private care homes from eviction or neglect. It is believed that as many as 300,000 residents of private care homes are funded by local authorities, and more than one in 10 homes are in the hands of the private or voluntary sector. But whereas residents who are in state-run homes are protected by human rights legislation, those in private care homes are not, even if their care is funded by their local authority. .
Dignity in old age is our right
LAST week saw the release of research by the Institute of Gerontology at King's College London and the National Centre for Social Research into the abuse and neglect of older people across the UK. From a Scottish viewpoint, its findings were startling. More than four per cent of older Scots, roughly 47,500, say they have been the subject of abuse - 28,600 of them by someone considered to be in a position of trust, mainly family and friends. .
Victory over care 'lottery' for elderly
Thousands of gravely ill older people will no longer have to spend their savings or sell their homes to pay for round-the-clock medical care, under government guidelines to be revealed this week. Ministers are unveiling measures to tackle the 'postcode lottery' that gives pensioners in some areas free nursing care, but forces others in England to fork out tens of thousands of pounds. Around 70,000 senior citizens are thought to be victims of a scandal caused by some local councils and NHS trusts refusing to take on the expensive burden of looking after older people who have terminal conditions such as cancer and dementia. .
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