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Barbara Windsor's husband brands dementia care 'a disgrace' as he urges government to take action
28 August 2019, 13:52
Barbara Windsor and her husband have urged everyone to sign an open letter to the government to help dementia sufferers and their carers.
Dame Barbara Windsor’s husband has called care costs faced by dementia sufferers a “disgrace” as the couple prepare to deliver an open letter to No10 next week.
Scott Mitchell and EastEnders legend Barbara are among 50,000 people who signed the call for Prime Minister Boris Johnson to take action.
Actress Barbara - best known for playing Peggy Mitchell in the BBC soap - has been battling dementia since 2014.
And after caring for his 82-year-old wife, Scott, 56, has said families of those affected face crippling costs of around £100,000.
In a new video, Scott said: “It really seems this is the disease of punishment.
“Not only do people have to live with it and go through the terror and horror — and their loved ones caring for them do too, but on top of that they’ll say ‘Let’s make it a bit more difficult’.
“I genuinely feel for the people that have to give up their jobs and sell their homes, selling their parents’ homes that they have worked all their lives for. And you do wonder, how did we get here? How did we get to a situation where there is so much disregard for people?”
He then added: “The conversation is getting much louder, and much broader, and they can’t ignore it. They can’t ignore what’s going on. It’s a disgrace.
“We are calling on the public to help us end this injustice and sign our open letter that myself and Barbara will be delivering to the Prime Minister next week. This cannot go on any longer.”
Barbara retired from the spotlight after announcing she was suffering from dementia last year.
But in a rare public appearance, she plans to hand in an open letter on behalf of Alzheimer’s Society to Downing Street, demanding Boris Johnson provides long-term funding for social care.
In the letter, Barbara said: "My heart goes out to the many, many people who are really struggling to get the care they so desperately need.
"Please join us, and sign our letter - let's do everything we can to sort this out."
This comes after Barbara’s former EastEnders co-star Shane Ritchie opened up about her declining health in a recent interview.
Speaking to The Mirror, Shane, 55, said: “Babs always recognises me when she sees me but then I don’t know what it would be like the following day.”
Despite admitting it’s been ‘horrible’ to see her suffer, the actor - who played Alfie Moon - added that her ‘sparkly’ eyes were still there.
