Southern Cross, responsible for looking after 31,000 elderly residents across Britain, has announced that it will underpay its rent from today as it struggles with a £230m annual rental bill.
The firm, which owns almost 750 care homes, 22 of which are in Merseyside, and employs thousands of staff, will pay nearly a third less rent than it should for the next four months in what is effectively a loan from its landlords.
Officials said there was no threat of imminent closure of any of the homes but union leaders, and families of residents, called for urgent action.
GMB union general secretary Paul Kenny said: “The focus now has to be on what happens to the 31,000 elderly and vulnerable residents in Southern Cross homes across the UK.
“The GMB is calling on politicians across the country to step in and sort out the uncertainty.
“These are not factories facing closure, they are a vital part of the social fabric of every community.”
Southern Cross warned it was in a “critical financial condition” as it unveiled a £311m loss in the six months to March 31. It is struggling with rising rent bills and declining local authority fees as admissions declined by 15% in the first half of its financial year.
David Cameron’s spokesman said affected residents would not “lose out”.
He said: “We are clear that we are putting the interests of residents at the top of the list.”
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