MEL Stride’s letter to the "Courier" (December 22) was disappointing in its lack of empathy and understanding of the realities of life as experienced by so many people:

The economy is slowing in comparison to the rest of Europe. For many, wages have for years been falling relative to inflation.

As well as the hardship caused, this is resulting in a recruitment crisis in essential services such as the NHS, where this is exacerbated by an exodus of EU staff who no longer see a future here.

The Health Service is in any case starved of resources, resulting in longer waiting times for surgery and treatment.  Thousands of operations have now been cancelled to divert resources in an attempt to enable hospitals to manage through the winter peak period. Accident and Emergency services are routinely unable to meet their waiting time targets. There is no sign of the government meeting its own target for recruiting new GPs.

Many of the new jobs which Mel Stride refers to are low paid, insecure and in the gig economy with its attendant exploitative and uncaring employment practices. Jobs previously offering security and decent employment conditions are increasingly being casualised or are only available on short-term contracts.

The housing crisis is out of control. Rough sleeping is once again commonplace, at a level we haven’t seen since the 1980s.  As well as rooflessness, countless people, including families with young children, have to contend with living in bed and breakfasts, sofa surfing, or relying on friends or family to put them up in often overcrowded and unsatisfactory conditions.

When the government stimulates housing demand by cuts in stamp duty or the Help to Buy scheme, the absence of a sufficient supply of housing means this simply stokes house price inflation, adding to the problem of unaffordability, and feeds through to increased profits for developers. This is reflected in the astonishing bonuses being paid to their senior managers, such as the £100 million allegedly heading in the direction of the chief executive of Persimmon Homes.

For many younger people, the ambition of owning their own home will never be realised. They are caught in the double bind of trying to save a huge deposit whilst at the same time having to pay private sector market rents, often for ex council houses sold under the Right to Buy, 40 per cent of which are now owned by private landlords. The private rented sector is largely unregulated and offers no security. Tenants can be evicted with relative ease upon service of a notice to quit and on application to the county court, without the need to give any reason. Families living in such circumstances find it hard to make long-term plans or put down roots.

Everywhere we look, we see the continuing erosion of public services and amenities; the latest example locally being the threatened sale of the council offices in Crediton.

We need politicians who will grasp the problems we face and converse with us on our terms and with candour and honesty. Here’s hoping for something better in 2018.

John Craythorne

People’s Park Road

Crediton