SIR – As a fellow pensioner I understand and completely sympathise with the lady contributor of the letter “Compulsory for many” (Welwyn Hatfield Times, March 28 edition).

Government after government has ensured we remain the lowest paid pensioners in Europe.

This is condemning many to penury after a lifetime of contributing financially and socially to ensure they avoided the extreme difficult situations they now find themselves faced with.

The point of my reluctant support for Workfare was that being from a generation that existed without any form of state help, I believe it is beholden on all sections of society to do whatever is necessary to support themselves and seek employment.

No offered employment should be beneath any one’s dignity.

We pensioners should not be having these kind of disagreeable differences’ but unfortunately, realism always takes precedent over ideals.

Yes the current situation is completely unfair and unjust, but the reality is the nation is broke, bust, bankrupt, insolvent, skint, call what you will, the end result is the same.

The financial resources to maintain the current welfare system are rapidly running out and only supported by �4bn-a-day of borrowings, a situation that world markets will not allow to continue (in fact our national debt is greater than that of Greece, currently over one trillion).

The contents of the lady’s letter clearly demonstrates her knowledge, so I am surprised that she and the others who condemn Workfare cannot foresee this is just the precursor of the financial hardships that are surely approaching.

The good times are gone forever and if we are even to attempt to mitigate the forthcoming problems the main cause of the current situation must be addressed.

Successive governments, especially the last Labour administration for purely political advantage to keep wages down, allowed unrestricted immigration. This population increase of some twenty million since the 60s has been the root causation of why the workplace is now overloaded.

Surplus labour over demand always lowers wages, hence the problem, not difficult to work out for those that wish to see.

The good lady writes about the many different benefit programmes. However, with rapidly rising unemployment, shrinking markets, unsustainable national debt and interest, billions wasted on the EU, foreign aid and the burden of over 200,000 extra migrants every year, one must pose the very pertinent question, where is the money coming from?

As a nation, our current expenditure over income is unsustainable (watch this space). Life as we know it is going to alter forever.

An unpleasant future I know, but unless the electorate and the good lady writer are prepared to acknowledge the need for far-reaching reforms required to halt the predicable forthcoming financial catastrophe, then Workfare will seem like a pleasant dream.

Anyone who ignores the above or refuses through their vote to do anything about it, are themselves part of the problem.

Roy Painter,

Brookmans Park.