care for another three years, expert warns. experts warn that this means older people will not substantially benefit from any changes for up to another decade. now, in recent years, all governments have struggled with the question of how to fund the rising cost of social care. we'll be asking why this challenge is so difficult to solve. the reform party's east midlands conference kicks off this evening, and gb news political editor will join nigel farage for an interview ahead of the sold out gathering in leicester. latest polling shows that reform's popularity continues to grow. but could elon musks online loving with tommy robinson present a problem for nigel farage and his ambitions for his fledgling party.7 plus, chancellor rachel reeves has warned that bigger pubuc reeves has warned that bigger public sector pay rises will mean cuts to services. union bosses have threatened strike action over reevess proposed

2.8% pay rise, but the treasury has told ministers there will be no additional funding on the table. and joining me for the next hour. ive got my panel, former labour mp bill rammell and conservative peer lord moylan. but first, here are your news headlines with sam francis. >> miriam, thank you and good evening to you. just coming up to 6:02. the top story tonight, elon musk's comments on grooming gangs here in the uk have been slammed by the health secretary as misjudged and misinformed. the tech billionaire accused sir keir starmer of inaction and said safeguarding minister jess said safeguarding ministerjess phillips deserves to be in prison over her comments on child exploitation in oldham. the conservatives have also criticised musk for sharing what they've described as factually inaccurate claims, and warned against distracting from

survivors needs. however, wes streeting has hit back and urged mr musk to help tackle the rape gangs. >> look, when it comes to tackling the serious issue of child sexual exploitation and abuse, i do think that online giants, social media companies have got a big part to play in helping us to identify and prosecute perpetrators of child sexual exploitation and abuse. so whether it's elon musk or anyone else, if those leaders of those giants want to work with this government, we're willing to work with tech giants to make sure that we keep young people safe online and free from exploitation. >> former conservative mp for dudley north, marco longhi, has announced he is joining reform uk. today he'll join nigel farage this evening at a sold out regional conference in leicester, where he'll respond to kemi badenoch claims about the reform party. in a statement, longhi said that his decision is about restoring national identity and

prioritising people's needs over what he described as political correctness and elitism. he also criticised the conservative party's shift leftwards and its failure to represent the people, pledging to fight for the change that he believes is necessary. comments. the government is promising a shake up of social care, but it could be years before big changes happen. health secretary wes streeting says an independent commission starting in april will grasp the nettle on reform, but its final report won't arrive until 2028. the review, chaired by baroness louise casey, aims to improve support for older people and those that are disabled with everyday tasks like washing, eating and medication. but lib dem leader sir ed davey says the process needs to move much faster. >> yes, because liberal democrats have led the call for a cross—party commission. but given the crisis in social care and the impact that has on the nhs, we do need to move much faster. so the liberal democrats will be calling on for many more

immediate measures to tackle the chronic shortage of staff in our care system and for the pace of this commission to be accelerated significantly. we have to tackle this. the conservatives, less the left, the care system, the nhs in a total mess. so we know the crisis is deep, but we've had many reports before . many reports before. >> flu cases in england's hospitals have quadrupled in just a month, with over 5000 patients treated last week alone. nhs chiefs are warning of intense pressures as the virus pushes hospitals to breaking point amid an expected cold snap this weekend. health officials are also urging vulnerable people to stay warm and make sure their medications are on hand, with just 37% of those deemed at risk vaccinated so far. emergency department waits are also worsening, with over 12,000 patients stuck in ambulances for an hour or more last week. and luke littler is on the brink of history tonight,

just one win away from becoming the youngest darts world champion ever. the 17 year old will face michael van gerwen, chasing his fourth title in friday's blockbuster final of the world darts championship. littler has dominated the tournament so far, with record breaking performances, and the pairs head to head is currently tied six six. setting up for a thrilling showdown between darts rising star and one of its greats. those are the latest headunes greats. those are the latest headlines for now. one other very, very experienced darts player is, of course, miriam cates. >> for the very latest gb news direct to your smartphone, sign up to news alerts by scanning the qr code or go to gbnews.com/alerts. >> welcome back to dewbs& co with me, miriam cates, and joining me until 7:00. i've got

my panel with me here in the studio. i've got daniel moylan, conservative life peer, house of lords and bill rammell, former labour minister. and of course, please do get your news and views in at gbnews.com/yoursay. we'll be reading out a selection of your comments throughout the programme. now our first story. the government has announced the first step towards creating a national care service. however, there's going to be a three year delay before any reforms take place, and campaigners have called the move long overdue, warning that older people will not see the benefits of these reforms for up to another decade and that more urgent action is needed. here was the health secretary, wes streeting, defending the government's approach this morning. >> the general election we've legislated for the first ever fair pay agreements. we've delivered the biggest expansion of carer's allowance since the 19705, of carer's allowance since the 1970s, and we're delivering big increases in social care funding, including specific funding, including specific funding for things like the disabled facilities grant. but there's more to do. and if we're going to break the cycle of failure after failure under different types of government

laboun different types of government labour, lib dem, conservative, snp led government's, we've all failed on this. the best way to do that is an independent commission that brings political parties together. so we've got a plan not just for the next few years, which this government will deliver on, but a plan for the next three decades. >> wes streeting there now bill, the labour party have had 14 years in opposition to come up with a plan for social care. why are they kicking the can down the road again? >> well, i don't think they're kicking the can down the road and there's already a lot of good being done. for example, the £880 million that's so long overdue for local government is a really good boost. the carer's allowance is , wes streeting has allowance is, wes streeting has said, the biggest increase since the 1970s. but we also need serious cross—party, long term reform. why does it have to be cross—party? because you want this to stick over the longer term. i am very encouraged by the appointment of louise casey

to lead the independent review. she's one of the most serious social reformers i ever worked with in government. she's crossbench, she's worked with governments of both parties, and we need that cross—party consensus. and i'm encouraged by the fact that cross—party talks are going to start within the next month. but i also think we need radical thinking. for a long time, i've held the view that whatever you call it, you need to collectivise the risk of needing long term care by something equivalent to. and i'll say the words a death tax. and what do i mean by that? that when you die, you above a certain asset level, you get taxed about 10% of your assets. and that guarantees you free long term care. and i think that's the kind of radical thinking that we need. >> daniel, is this welcome news? i mean, the previous government didn't fix the problem, but they had introduced some plans to cap the overall cost of social care for each individual. i think at about £87,000 or something that's now been scrapped. so

we're back to square one, aren't we? >> well, we're back to another inquiry. the £87,000 cap and all that was based on a previous inquiry led by andrew dilnot . inquiry led by andrew dilnot. and the government and boris's government did try to introduce it. i don't know how it died. i suspect it was another rishi kill the you know, the kill the you know, th