ONE of the great success stories of the 20th century was the decline in poverty among the elderly.

That story however is starting to change dramatically.

Everyone knows that unemployment within young families has risen as a result of recession, growing competition in the labour market and a dozen other economic factors.

And for these people if the latest Budget by Chancellor George Osborne does not help there is a genuine fear of what will happen about housing, jobs and access to health services and feeding a family.

The situation is even worse for disabled people and frail and elderly pensioners like me who had the good fortune of never being ill or being out of work for more than 50 years, paid all my taxes and saved for retirement but then had that pension pot taken off me by a previous government and now have to live like one in three pensioners in Britain do today – in virtual poverty in retirement.

I’m not asking for sympathy for myself because as the welfare state collapses medical centres, bus services, day centres, sheltered housing and residential care homes are all being closed due to social services and NHS cuts which are affecting everyone, while the cost of living keeps going up.

But I do wonder about the difference between sympathy and compassion. Sympathy sees and says ‘I’m sorry’. Compassion whispers and says ‘I’ll help’.

Bob Welch, Hooten Lane, Leigh