Government ministers simply don't have the bottle to make the changes in funding the elderly care system that are desperately needed, according to Andrew Dilnot, the economist brought in to look into reforming the system.

Calling the means testing system "stupid and crazy", Dilnot told an English Community Care Association conference: "We have a model that works for an amount of money that is plausible – we just have to have the guts to do it. No politician, local or national, wants to talk about this [because] the current funding structure stinks – it is crazy."

The current means test, he said, was "the worst I've seen in 30 years – it encourages people to cheat the system".

Dilnot went on: "We need to be less polite, and a little bit more cross. Write to your MP, write to your minister, because we need to be taken seriously on this."

The Department of Health said: "We are committed to reforming the social care system. The [Dilnot] commission has begun to expose the complexities, difficulties and the trade-offs that will be required. However, the commission did not cover other fundamental issues like how to improve quality, the integration of care and simplifying our care laws to make it easier for people to get the help they need.

"That is why we are considering these issues before we set out our plans for a major reform of social care in a White Paper and progress report on funding in spring 2012. Experts in the field have welcomed this approach."

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