Whilst they were answering questions from me and other MPs this week in Parliament, the Government refused to give guarantees about the future of residents in Southern Cross care homes. Instead they passed the buck to local authorities.

However in Nottinghamshire, the County Council is itself trying to sell off its care homes, including Westwood, James Hince and St Michaels View. We have four Southern Cross care homes and the staff this week had no idea who owns them. In fact I can reveal that each one has a different owner.

The owners of Sothern Cross care Homes are mainly based abroad - often in the Caymen Islands, or rather the tax avoiding companies that own them are based abroad. It is a total shambles.

The guarantee I sought in the Commons this week is that no resident from Bassetlaw will be forced to move from their home and none will be provided with an inferior care package. We have already had the outrage of Leonard Cheshire charities selling off a Retford care home and moving people to other homes many miles away. We have had the scandal of Abbeymoor care home where staff were locked out and it was then revealed that they were having to pay for food for residents themselves.

Recently we have had Rufford Care Home where I have had another complaint last week and now we have the disaster of Southern Cross.  Rufford management want to meet me, and I certainly want to meet them.

I want these guarantees, but I also want an immediate reversal of the decision to sell off council care homes. We need this provision even more than we did before.

I have had two letters  yesterday, one from the family of a 91 year old living in Retford and another from the family of a 100 year old woman. The families want answers, but more importantly they want guarantees: continuity of care, quality of care and they do not want their family members evicted from their homes. In the 21^st century is this too much to ask?

If you have worries, or information about problems in care homes then I need to know, in confidence. The staff and families must speak out. Call me on 01909 506200, drop by my office at 68A Carlton Road, Worksop, or email me at mannj@parliament.uk. Every case is of course dealt with in total confidence.