ITHOUGHT I was down on my luck, having to exist on incapacity benefit with a condition that shows no signs of improvement. But my perspective of life was changed when I bumped into a former workmate.

Why? Blackburn Council evicted him from Mill Hill flats and he is forced to live on the streets. But he does not beg. He is not a wino. He is just a victim of circumstance.

Because he has been evicted he has no place of residence and without a place of residence he cannot get state benefits.

This man is not a lay-about. I worked with him for several years and he worked hard. He was a tenant of the council for more than 20 years and now they have put him on the streets.

How can this be - that a man who has worked hard is let down by the system his taxes have paid for? I hope the people who decided to evict him have roofs over their heads, but if they have a conscience they should have a hard time sleeping over their decision, which has left him homeless and without access to benefits.

This has made me realise that things could be worse than they are and that not every homeless person has brought it upon themselves. Some are victims of circumstance.

I hope things improve for my former workmate. He deserves the opportunity to live with a roof over his head.

As for the Council, they should hang their heads in shame. When you vote in future ask the people after your vote what they will do for the genuine homeless - as, one day, it could be you.

As a footnote: when are Mill Hill flats going to be demolished? And are the tenants at Queen's Park flats going to face the same fate?

IAN DAVIES, Openshaw Drive, Blackburn.

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.