A campaigning solicitor has called for an end to the “killer” closures of care homes and for a drastic rethink of elderly care.

Yvonne Hossack spoke out after she was cleared last week over career-threatening allegations of serious professional misconduct.

She said the nationwide closures of homes by local councils – often because they are on valuable building sites – could not be justified if they cost lives.

In an interview with The Sunday Telegraph, Miss Hossack said: “My bottom line is: ‘You don’t kill old ladies and gentlemen’. It’s very simple and it should be a self-evident truth.

“It seems to me as a society, we don’t value the lives of elderly people. We somehow see them as expendable and that loss of life can be justified in cash terms. But I say: ‘These people are not expendable and life cannot be looked at in cash terms. Money is never a good enough reason to kill a human being’.”

Miss Hossack, 53, has prevented the closure of more than 80 care homes by challenging local authorities. Her critics say she operates as a political campaigner rather than a lawyer.

She had faced with being struck off by the Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal after she was accused of six breaches of rules governing conduct following complaints by Northamptonshire, Staffordshire and Hull councils. The tribunal, however, ruled on Friday that she was guilty of just one breach of conduct “at the lowest level” and the panel refused to impose a punishment.

Her supporters had condemned the councils’ complaints as a “witch-hunt” and yesterday hailed her as a national champion for the rights of the elderly, although she insists: “I don’t campaign. I simply say if something is wrong.”

Miss Hossack, from Kettering, Northamptonshire, said that forcing an elderly person to move could, at worst, cause stress-induced and potentially-fatal heart attacks, strokes and other major health problems. At best, she said, it led to unease or depression and lowered the body’s immune system, leading to an increased risk of flu and colds.

“This is an issue for the whole of society – not just for our elderly parents, but for all of us,” she said.

Miss Hossack had admitted that some of her methods are unorthodox and challenge the Establishment. She told the tribunal that sometime her clients’ interests could be more important than the rules: “If somebody was falling off a cliff, and they were blind and deaf, I would ignore the rule that says ‘Keep off the grass’, in order to grab them back.” She estimated that, by preventing home closures, she had saved “hundreds if not thousands of lives.”

Her work has consumed her for the past seven years. The pressures contributed to the end of her 23-year marriage and brought her to the brink of bankruptcy. forcing her to surrender her home, her car and her savings. She has constantly worked without pay for desperate clients.

The solicitor – whose supporters have included Alan Johnson, the Home Secretary – said that she only considered the closure of care homes to be justified in cases where the buildings were dangerous or virtually impossible to repair, or if there was a merger of homes where residents had been properly consulted and accepted such a move was justified.

The Government is pushing for as many people as possible to be independent in old age -partly for their self-esteem but also because this puts less of a burden on cash-strapped local authorities. “Great idea,” said Miss Hossack, “but the majority of elderly people simply can’t live independently. They need 24-hour oversight and supervision.

“If there was a children’s home and experts said they might die if it was closed, we, as a society, would do our very best to make sure that didn’t happen. But elderly people are, wrongly, looked upon differently.”

At present, Ms Hossack works from an office at her home and she employs just one assistant. However, she was already back at work yesterday and planning to increase her workforce. “It’s now business as usually. It’s been very difficult for me, staff-wise. How do I say to people: “Please come for a job even though I am under investigation and I may be struck off’? Hopefully now my business can be more stable and it will expand.”

The Solicitors’ Regulation Authority, which brought the case against Miss Hossack, says it will not comment on Friday’s verdicts until it had assessed the written findings.

Miss Hossack’s supporters, including charities for the elderly, have heralded the rulings as a victory for common sense and the rights of old people. Age Concern said the principles for which she had fought are “incredibly important”.

Earlier Article

A solicitor who helped thousands of people fight against cuts to care services faces being struck off after the councils she battled complained about her.

Yvonne Hossack will appear at a Solicitors Disciplinary Tribunal next month. She is accused of bringing her profession into disrepute.

Ms Hossack, of Kettering, Northants, who has been described as “a thorn in the side of the establishment”, could be fined £5,000, suspended or kicked out of the profession altogether.

She has issued the Home Secretary, Alan Johnson, with a summons to appear as a witness after he declined to publicly back her – despite privately thanking her for fighting cuts in his Hull constituency.

Mr Johnson told Ms Hossack that she “done a brilliant job under difficult circumstances” in fighting against the closure of a care home.

“My constituents are extremely grateful,” Mr Johnson said in an email to the solicitor. “There is a large double gin and tonic waiting for you in the Strangers’ Bar.”

However, he has not responded to requests to testify on her behalf.

The hearing was prompted because councils in Hull, Northamptonshire and Staffordshire complained to the Law Society about Ms Hossack.

She has helped groups in all four areas take legal action against cuts to services or closures of respite homes. She cites evidence that residents who have care taken away or are forced to move to different homes are much more likely to die.

Ms Hossack faces a range of allegations, including forcing the councils to waste time and money defending in the courts policies that she knows can only be delayed, and “improperly” encouraging clients to campaign in the media.

Ms Hossack said: “I believe that it is the responsibility of every individual in this country to defend the weak, the sick and the vulnerable.

“I grieve that the Law Society has decided to prosecute me on the basis of the fears of government over what my work – which I have carried out at significant cost to myself – exposes.”

In February 2006 a disabled people’s group represented by Ms Cossack took Northamptonshire County Council to the High Court over its plans to cut the adult care services budget by £2.6 million and close three respite homes.

While the council won the case, Ms Hossack claims that concessions forced upon it led to £2 million worth of services being saved.

Chris Kinsey, a member of the Save Our Services campaign group from the area, said: “Yvonne is being persecuted. They are hounding her because she dares to give a voice to the disabled.

“She’s the only solicitor willing to do this. If she gets struck off, we’ll lose our voice.”

Brian Binley, the MP for Northamptonshire South, was a member of the County Council cabinet when the cuts were decided. He has since publicly apologised for the handling of the affair.

He said: “There is no doubting Yvonne’s passions and her willingness to fight cases impacting on care issues which most other lawyers would not touch and that can only been seen to be laudable.”

A spokesman for the Solicitors’ Regulation Authority, which is taking the action following the complaints to the Law Society, declined to comment beyond outlining the allegations.

A spokesman from Northamptonshire County Council said: “Northamptonshire is one of a few local authorities and organisations that have submitted a complaint to the Law Society. We anticipate that the complaint will be dealt with by a hearing in September.”

Hull City Council, Staffordshire County Council and Mr Johnson declined to comment.

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