Re: Eric Beint's poignant letter (EA Jan 5).

I would only add that this Government knows little about honouring the elderly. Low pensions, inadaquate housing and low prioritisation of geriatric care are all the hallmarks of a Government that is more concerned with the cult of youthfulness than the veneration of old age. All too often the elderly have been treated as an encumbrance upon the state. We express horror when conmen trick the old or commit unspeakable acts against them. But the callous indifference of the Government is little different to the actions of those predators who prey upon the elderly.

J ADAMS

Freshbrook