> he wonders if telephones are a tool used by the national health service to cut costs that just lowered my opinion of him. first he mentions there is an onlin

> he wonders if telephones are a tool used by the national health service to cut costs that just lowered my opinion of him. first he mentions there is an online service, but for some reason he can't be bothered to obtain the user id required to use it. similarly with his bank, he can't use facebook messenger to communicate with them (and why on earth would he want to) and mentions their other digital banking services for online access, but again refuses to use them. the report of millions of people with 'telephone phobia' is misrepresenting things - there are not 4.5 million people with a mental condition that causes them fear and anxiety when confronted by a telephone, there are that many people who don't like phones, the same as there are that many people who don't like spiders. and the idea that the NHS might be trying to save money by providing a telephone service staffed 24/7 is just so ludicrous it's hard to know how to respond. the author obviously has mental health issues regarding social interactions, and should seek help for that issue rather than trying to replace the telephone.