Society’s poorest are victims of ill-conceived policies

ANNE Johnstone is to be congratulated for her perceptive article outlining the savage treatment that is being forced on the poorest people in our country (“No-one to speak for society’s worst off”, The Herald, March 29).

I am a criminal justice worker and am all-too aware of the pressures on young and alienated people. Resources are woefully inadequate, and with the planned welfare reforms kicking in soon, inevitably there will be further chaos.

Even now it is often impossible to get through to Clydebank Benefit Agency, council finance departments are struggling to cope with housing and council tax arrears, and criminal justice services are stressed. This is not the fault of the staff, who do their best.

What does a young person do when they cannot get a roof over their head and cannot receive benefits ? They turn to crime.

Young families will be made homeless, and once you are in arrears you can no longer be considered for housing.

As with many of the ideological reforms the Coalition Government is pushing through, it is my opinion that the effects of these policies have simply not been thought through.

In her column, Anne Johnstone asks if the Coalition is stupid or heartless. I think the Government is dangerously inept, and then some. Sandy Chalmers, Balchraggan, Invershin, by Lairg, Sutherland.