SIR - A recent programme on BBC Radio 4 dealt with the problem of loneliness and isolation, in an interview a woman made a very telling comment in that she never took photos because she had no one to show them to.
She lived in the rural Gloucestershire, but wherever you live the problem is the same, empty shops, banks, post offices, pubs, libraries and reductions in public transport.
These service reductions isolate people, particularly the elderly, loneliness leads to poor health, a lack of activity to keep them busy and after 8 years of austerity a lack of cash to spend.
According to Age UK, half a million people over the age of 60 spend every day alone, online shopping and the growth of town retail outlets with ample free parking may suit some people but its to the detriment of the high street who are struggling with high rising rents and reduced sales, with a real sense of a lack of community spirit, and a world that supports the individual rather than the collective.
We ignore this problem at our peril.
John Appleyard, Firthcliffe Parade, Liversedge
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