The government will respond before Christmas to the report of the Royal Commission on Long-Term Care, leader of the House of Commons Margaret Beckett said last week. Dr Chai Patel, chair of the Continuing Care Conference, an umbrella group of local authorities, charities, healthcare providers and financial institutions, said he wanted the government to accept all the recommendations in the report, which was published in March. 'The resources are there for better long-term care straight away, given government goodwill, ' he said.