A big focus of yesterday’s throne speech was helping our elderly.

Emphasising that it is of equal importance to ensure seniors can remain at home “for as long as possible”, Mrs Ferson said the ministry would also be developing incentives to help seniors afford appropriate home renovations.

While this is admirable, in some cases it will have negative consequences for Bermuda’s youth and lead to more problems in the long run.

There are many cases of seniors who live in sizeable homes by themselves, acquired or built in the days before the boom.  It adds to the housing problem.  Those homes are not available on the market for young Bermudians looking to start families and establish themselves.

The problem is that many of Bermuda’s younger generation believe Bermuda is not in their long term future.  The island simply isn’t affordable anymore. If the island becomes so unaffordable that more and more youth leave, who will be left to fund the deteriorating pension system and provide for our elders?