YOUR correspondent (Letters, November 2) has hit a nail on the head – the elderly are not to blame for the housing crisis.

Overpopulation is. A housing industry that prices first-timers out of the equation is. And, indeed, higher level earners (recently dubbed the one per cent by protesters in London, New York, etc) are having a small but significant impact by way of second and third home purchases.

The elderly have been made a scapegoat.

To solve the housing crisis we first need to reduce our numbers, or look at alternative housing infrastructure. High-rise flats are not everyone’s cup of tea but I can see no other way with the current birthrates.

Modern flats would need significantly more input from both the police and councils to ensure they do not end up quagmires of crime.

DJ Cook, Southampton.