The government could not use a grant scheme for respite care to provide extra funding to save the Corrin Memorial Home from closure, Health Minister David Ashford has said.

The Peel residential home is threatened with closure, although its directors are due to hold talks with government to attempt to find a solution.

In the House of Keys on Tuesday, Chris Thomas (Douglas Central) referred to a contract the Department of Health and Social Care has with the home for it to provide respite care beds. He said that undermined previous assertions by Mr Ashford that the department could not step in to finance the home.

Mr Thomas said: ’Given that the Corrin Memorial Home is one of only a few homes that have got a contract with DHSC to provide the service, the existence of that contract means that in fact we have the basis for what the minister said could not happen - on May 12 - which is that the department cannot step in or cannot provide any assistance or subvention.

’Does the minister agree we in actual fact have the legal mechanism so that finance can be provided to this public interest, charitable home?’

The minister warned: ’We need to be a bit careful. The finance that is being provided is for two specific respite beds, which forms a small offering of what is in place in the home.

’I do not think we should be extrapolating that to say it gives the department the right to be able to fund the home in the way that the member is suggesting.’

But Mr Thomas continued to press the minister.

’The important thing here is the principle that a contract can be given or funds can be given to this home because it seemed to be clear from the minister’s answer on May 12 that he was arguing that no private or public charitable organisation could receive such funds,’ said Mr Thomas.

’The principle that has been established is that it can. We are not talking about the magnitude or the mechanism or the details, we are just talking about the principle of the mechanism.’

The minister responded: ’Principles are fine but the practicalities of the mechanism are important and we have to remember the funding is for a very specific purpose, to fund two respite beds in the west.

’It is very different talking about giving grants and funding to actually supporting a private operational as a whole.’

Mr Ashford earlier said the longstanding agreement between government and the home had been in place since 1998, to pay a grant for each of three respite care rooms, initially, now two.

Last week Tynwald backed a motion for the government to enter talks to extend the notice period on the closure of the home to six months to allow time to find a solution.

Earlier this year, the trustees announced the home was no longer viable economically and the original notice period would see it close by the end of July.

The trustees welcomed last week’s development in Tynwald and pledged to engage with the government but said they were waiting to see a detailed proposal for support. Without sufficient funding, the licence operate would expire on July 31 and there were no funds to continue trading.