Press Release

Little progress with getting older people online

Tuesday, August 26 2008

Responding to new statistics released today by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) which show no increase in older people using the internet, David Sinclair, Head of Policy for Help the Aged, says: “Absolutely no progress has been made in getting older people online and the spotlight is now on Government and the industry to get switched on. Nearly 7 million (70 per cent) of people of 65 have never used the internet.

“Exclusion from modern society is increasingly less about being able to get to the library and more about being able to access the rivers of information flowing in and out of British homes each day. If you cannot access these rivers you cannot take part.

“This is not only about getting cheap car insurance online. It is about equality in the marketplace. We know internet access can mean a difference of hundreds of pounds over the year from deals on utility bills, food to all other manner of other goods. In a time when costs are rising should we not allow the poorest among us a chance to keep afloat?

“The Government must make older people a central aspect of the digital equalities strategy expected this autumn. When questioned by Help the Aged, a fifth (21 per cent) of older people said they wanted to learn more about the internet and new technology.1

It is time for industry to deliver more accessible and usable technologies, which will allow them access to a huge market. The Government needs to invest in education and access to hardware, or see a technological divide enforcing these economic inequalities.”