Protect our pensioners

Published: 21 May 2010

• PENSIONERS will expect the new council to ensure we are not excluded, forgotten or ignored. Any cuts resulting from the recession will have a disastrous impact on pensioners. Council and NHS services for the elderly will be of particular concern.

We will be looking for a commitment to:

• More transparency and accountability from organisations which deliver vital services to the elderly such as care homes, sheltered housing and benefits. Outsourcing vital services means less accountability to those we elected to care for our interests.

• More accountability to the council from organisations whose role is to deliver these services, including voluntary organisations such as Islington Strategic Partnership. Another that causes grave concerns for many pensioners is Homes for Islington.   

There are growing concerns regarding the NHS in Islington. Decisions such as the closure of the A&E at Whittington Hospital and Finsbury Health Centre were not transparent. Too often it is difficult to pin down which of the numerous NHS sub-groups is responsible. What are polyclinics? How will they affect us?

There must be a major improvement in the transparency, decision-making and accountability between councillors and the executive. Our experience in trying to deal with issues affecting pensioners in the past was of a sense of exclusion, not only of the community but of many of our councillors.     

One of the problems for pensioners is information and access. Websites and computers are not the answer to improving council transparency or accountability. We will be interested to know how the new council intends to address this problem. We certainly need a leading member who will keep us informed and help safeguard our interests and our concerns. 

John Worker
Secretary, Islington Pensioners Forum