Social care leaders have warned of the unintended consequences of the budget on North Wales hospitals.

Care Forum Wales (CFW) have launched a 'Save Social Care, Save the NHS' campaign.

According to the organisation, the combination of employer national insurance contribution (NIC) increases and a rise in the Real Living Wage will result in a £40 million funding shortfall in North Wales.

They also warn of a £150 million funding gap across Wales.

CFW believes this will lead to care homes and domiciliary care companies going bust unless social care receives an NHS-style exemption from these increases or emergency financial support.

They also believe that this would result in vulnerable people being left without care, putting more pressure on hospitals.

Mario Kreft MBE, chair of CFW, wrote a letter outlining the organisation's warning to Welsh MPs, Senedd members, First Minister Eluned Morgan, and Health Minister Jeremy Miles.

A similar letter was sent to Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Chancellor Rachel Reeves.

In the letter, Mr Kreft said: "We have more than 400 members across the private and third sectors, and they have reached out to us in alarm about the measures contained in the budget.

"We have calculated that, taken together, this would amount to a £150 million funding gap across the sector in Wales without an NHS-style exemption or additional financial support.

"Since 2020, 40 Welsh care homes have closed, and if more of them are forced out of business, this will also place an additional burden on our hospitals, which are already struggling to cope even before the onslaught of the added winter pressures.

Mr Kreft added: "The combination of changes to NICs and increases in National Minimum and National Living Wages in the UK Budget represents a huge amount of unfunded extra cost that will affect all providers in a sector where staffing costs make up between 65 per cent and 80 per cent of total expenditure.

"Average size care homes tell us that they are facing extra costs of tens of thousands of pounds, with larger care homes facing even heftier bills amounting to hundreds of thousands.

"One of our third sector members has calculated that the changes will cost them over £1 million.

"This comes on top of years of underfunding that, combined with the lack of a fair, standardised toolkit for calculating care fees, left the sector in Wales fragile even before the havoc wreaked by the Covid pandemic.

Mr Kreft raised concerns that budget measures could put the social care sector at risk, potentially leading to significant disruption.

He said: "The respected think tank, the Nuffield Trust, says the measures contained in the UK Budget could see 'swathes of the social care market collapsing under these extra cost pressures'.

Calling for action, Mr Kreft urged the Welsh Government to provide emergency financial support similar to that offered during the Covid pandemic.

He said: "Local authorities and health boards need to be directed to play their part in ensuring this financial support reaches the frontline to ensure this tax on care does not cause a collapse of social care and create a hammer blow for the NHS."