With regard to your front page article about the closure of many Sussex post offices (The Argus, January 29), I was one of the many who campaigned to save the Hailsham Road Post Office in Heathfield, mainly because of the superb service it offers to elderly people in the area. They will now have to use the post office situated in Budgens, which is a mile away and involves negotiating two steep hills.

When the closure notice appeared in the window on Monday, a man in his nineties was observed weeping on a bench nearby because he had no idea how he would cope. I feel incredibly angry and depressed that such cynicism was displayed by the Post Office, and that this so-called socialist Government has once again refused to care for a generation who fought for freedom and democracy in this country.

  • Robert Poulton, Lime Way Heathfield

So the Post Office, owned by the Government (that's you and me), is going ahead with its planned closures, despite opposition from thousands in the so-called "consultation."

So much for politicians' lip service about supporting communities, access and walkability, and fighting obesity and climate change.

Post offices are an important part of the network of local shops. The number of post offices has declined from 18,393 in 1999, to 14,376 in 2006, with more closures to come, as a result of changing customer demand but also because the Government has changed many services which used to be key post office business (such as pensions, benefits and TV licences). It may be obvious to you and me that without shops and services within walking distance, people will probably drive to out-of-town shopping centres, but clearly this hasn't occurred to the Government that is allowing these closures to happen. Either that, or they just don't care.

The Government claims that closures will be assessed against accessibility criteria, but many more people are no longer within walking distance of a post office. Currently 94 per cent of the population are within a mile. The intention is that after the current round of closures, 90 per cent of the population will be within a mile of a post office. This means that potentially 2.4 million people will no longer have a walk of less than a mile to their nearest post office, reducing the likelihood of them walking.

Like many others in Brighton and Hove, the post office in Richardson Road in Hove, is an "anchor tenant"

which provides essential services for locals and brings trade to the other shops and service providers.

Richardson Road is currently a bustling local centre, but closing the post office could damage this. Post office closures show that short term, narrow financial interests are being allowed to undermine other aspects of government policies. "Joined-up government," anyone?

  • Stephen Young, Brighton and Hove Living Streets Carlisle Road, Hove