Denis: Reality of the cost of living for pensioenrs
ACCORDING to research conducted by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, a minimum salary of £14,400 is what a single person needs to have an acceptable standard of living.
This takes into account not only basic food and housing but also socialising so they can "participate fully in society".
They make this point to prove that the minimum wage of £5. 80 an hour is not enough.
On their figures, it would need to be £6.92 an hour, if people were expected to work a 40 hour week.
David Furness of the think tank Social Market Foundation adds another gleam of sunshine when he adds: "I don't think the public are at all prepared for what is to come.
"The public still seems to think we can make the necessary cuts through improving the efficiency of our public services.
"But the reality is, the standard of public services will drop, and living standards could drop as a result, too.
"If we're going to re-balance the economy, we can expect some very big shocks."
This is obviously worrying for someone earning that minimum salary of £14,400 but what, I wonder, will pensioners make of it?
The basic state pension for a single person is £97.65 and for a couple is £156.15. This is £5,077.80 per year for a single person and £8,119.80 for a couple.
If it takes £14,400 a year to have an acceptable standard of living, what does that say about the way this country treats its pensioners? How can they "fully participate in society"?
Maybe we could ask Chris Huhne, the Lib Dem Energy Secretary in the coalition government. He is prepared to pay £56,597 a year for a speech writer. Or rather, his department is.
Now in a recession, you might think this extravagance would be one position that would remain unfilled. You might also think that a minister of the crown could write his own speeches.
But then, like so many of our politicians, you might also wonder whether multi millionaire Mr Huhne lives in the same world as the rest of us.