I WAS delighted to read Sue Nelson’s column of January 13 in defence of pensioners’ rights. She rightly points out that everything pensioners receive are entitlements, not charity.

It is a sad society indeed that attacks their senior citizens, who contributed financially their entire working life.

Just like younger people now believe national insurance and tax contributions will guarantee a comfortable retirement, we were under the same impression while working. Unfortunately it seems that those funds were mismanaged, and massive holes have appeared in the pension pots.

So who do they make suffer? Pensioners, of all people. We already have the lowest pensions in Europe; the rest of Europe does not need sweetening up with bus passes and other little perks – they can afford to pay for everything out of their generous pensions.

The only justice in all this is that those indulging in pensioner bashing will one day be pensioners, too – that’s if they are lucky enough to live that long and the stress of making life difficult for the vulnerable in our society does not kill them sooner.

Lastly, I do wish we would stop using OAP to describe pensioners – we are senior citizens.

Barbara Hudson, Badger Hill, York.