Ledbury is much more than 1,000 years old and that may be one of the reasons why it takes such good care of its old people.

My mother is currently enjoying this good care at the hands of the wonderful staff at Leadon Bank. We are right to be suspicious about moves concerning the future of this excellent old people's home and should see them in a long historical perspective.

The 'Welfare State', of which Leadon Bank Home is a small part, was the completion of a century of improvements in the living conditions of British unskilled people. These improvements were justified by Christian and Socialist arguments and paid for out of the profits of our early capitalist industrialisation and imperial greatness.

Things do not now look so good. Christianity, Socialism, Industry and Empire are but shadows of their former selves.

The British unskilled must sooner or later return to the third world conditions from which they had escaped.

Because of democracy, the government cannot say these things. It would lose elections, because turkeys do not vote for Christmas. This, sadly, doesn't mean that Christmas is prevented.

In the present case, the inevitable Christmas is the downgrading of the facilities for the unprosperous old people of Ledbury.

This explains the peculiar demeanour of Herefordshire Council officers at last Friday's meeting. They talked 'management speak' about 'quality' and 'care' and we all know from experience in education and the health services, that 'quality' and 'care' do not mean 'quality' or 'care' but that the road ahead leads downhill.

They know that Leadon Bank as we know it is doomed. They know that 'consultation' is a fudge.

Their pose of recording the comments with an imposing arrangement of boxes with flashing lights and hand held microphones merely dressed up the deception. They can file the recording away safely. They have 'had regard to' the views of those involved. They are not obliged to do anything about them.

They know that their little scheme with Shaw Homes has merely been postponed by the inconvenient court judgment.

Leadon Bank is not broke and does not need fixing, but the world beyond Ledbury is breaking.

We shall have Shaw Homes, and those of us who can had better start saving for our own old age. Leadon Bank, R.I.P.

Hugh Nicklin, John Lee Road,

Ledbury.