WHILE Cllr Kirkpatrick is eulogising about how well pensioners have done out of the budget, he should look at the small print.

Single mothers are being helped, but there is another group who have fared rather badly.

These are single grandmothers - single through no choice of their own, but as a result of widowhood.

Single pensioners can have income of £5,720 before tax, married pensioners £15,000 plus married allowance.

The higher personal allowance can be reduced by £1 for every £2 of income above the permitted amount.

A lot of single pensioners are paying for their £100 heating allowance.

It costs a single pensioner male or female, just the same as a married couple to cover their overheads including standing charges and TV licences. The one concession they get is a reduction in Community Charge.

They also pay large amounts in water charges, and water meters are only fair if their use is universal.

In the consultative document about water charges, it states a reduction cannot be made for single occupancy, as large families would be paying for this. So who is paying for whom?

Jean Robinson

Egerton

Address supplied

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