Helen Walker, Chief Executive of Carers UK, said:  

“The UK’s 5.8 million unpaid carers contribute a staggering £184 billion to the UK economy every year — yet many are struggling to get by without the support they urgently need.  

“The Chancellor’s Spring Statement today will offer little comfort to unpaid carers and families who are providing more care than ever, often at great personal cost. 

“Years of under-investment in social care have pushed more responsibility onto families, leaving many carers with no choice but to give up work to care, leaving them reliant on an inadequate social security system. 

“To address the significant and connected challenges carers are facing, we want Government to act decisively and publish a comprehensive plan that sets out how they intend to support unpaid carers in the short and long-term. Such a plan must protect carers from poverty, better enable them to stay in work if they wish to, and ensure they have access to high-quality social care support. 

“Without urgent action, unpaid carers will continue to shoulder unsustainable pressures, to the detriment of their own health and the wider economy.”