REGARDING your report (LET, February 14) about County Council leader Hazel Harding being grilled by MPs about the closing of some old people's homes, there she is wringing her hands in sympathy for them, yet she has got an 18 per cent pay increase along with other councillors too shy to give their names.

I would have thought that they would forego this to show solidarity with the old people. Ms Harding, it seems, has sympathy -- but not enough to refuse a pay rise.

The only advice I can give to the pensioners being turfed out of their homes is go to the nearest police station and declare they are asylum seekers. After all, that's what they are.

The whole system has got its priorities wrong. Our own people should come first.

J MULDERRIG, Underbank House, Bacup.