Forgotten pensioners are just left to suffer in silence

Sir, – Watching the news

I see workers going on strike because of rising costs – workers with an annual income of between £18,000 and £20,000 who cannot afford the cost-of-living.

The annual minimum to be able to live on is approximately £18,000, so can someone tell me how millions of elderly people, with an annual income below £8,000, can live when 50% of their income goes to energy bills?

These are the elderly that did not have the chance to save money in private pensions but just had the lowest incomes and worked hard their whole lives.

There are pension credits but they are not enough – these people are living way, way below the breadline.

These elderly people, often praised for building up the country after the war, had hoped to enjoy a bit of life in their retirement.

They are now living in utter poverty.

They have the same costs as everyone else, the prices are the same for them as they are for all of us.

OAPs are, mostly, referred to as having a comfortable life, but how can you live on not even £8,000 per year?

I’m terrified for them. They were ignored during the lockdowns, locked away under shielding and totally let down, many dying from Covid or from loneliness. Now the same elderly are totally overlooked when it comes to the cost-of-living and energy prices and are suffering in silence.

They live on an income, like in Victorian times, which is too little to live on but too much to die from.

These elderly are in total despair, as they have no idea where their next slice of bread comes from.

Who will step up for them – when will everyone wake up and realise that there are millions of elderly people suffering in silence with nowhere to go?

Mrs Maaike Cook.

Cash Feus, Strathmiglo.