Boris Johnson has told Dame Barbara Windsor that reforming the dementia care system is a “big old job” but he will do his best.

The 82-year-old EastEnders and Carry On actress, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2014, held the prime minister’s hand in the Downing Street garden after delivering a letter signed by 100,000 people, asking for better provision for people with the disease.

Her husband, Scott Mitchell, said Dame Barbara had asked him on the way to Number 10 “about eight times where we were going and why we were going”.

He told Sky News: “The nature of Barbara’s condition at the moment is she instantly forgets things now.

“Of an evening she will constantly ask me when we’re going home, or where are we, or why are there pictures of us in this place, and of course we’re sitting in our front room.”

The letter the couple delivered said dementia care across the country was “difficult, and in some places even impossible, to access”.

It added: “Our experience is of a care system that too often doesn’t care – one that is completely inadequate, unfair, unsustainable and in dire need of more money.”

It is estimated that 850,000 people are currently suffering from dementia in the UK – a figure expected to rise to a million in the next two years.

Dame Barbara – famous for her roles in the Carry On movies and as Peggy Mitchell in EastEnders – was joined by representatives from the Alzheimer’s Society, who pressed the case for extra funding.

The society said in July that people with dementia have spent £15bn of their own money on care in the last two years because of government delays in reforming the system.

Mr Johnson said: “We’ll do this. It’s very hard. We have to sort it out. I’m going to do my best for you. It’s a big old job.”

Mr Mitchell said the prime minister “listened” and said he was “‘very committed” to solving the problem.

As their chat came to a close, Dame Barbara asked the PM: “Can I have a kiss?”

“Of course you can,” he replied, leaning in to peck her on the cheek.

Dame Barbara also reminisced about Mr Johnson’s time as mayor of London, telling him: “They all loved you.”

It was “variable”, he replied.

Source: Read Full Article