By GB News (Politics) | Created at 2024-11-19 13:56:27 | Updated at 2024-11-22 22:22:59
3 days ago
Prime Minister Keir Starmer has dropped the biggest hint yet regarding the status of compensation for women born in the 1950s who were impacted by historic changes to the state pension age.
The Women Against State Pension Inequality (Waspi) campaign has fought for a pay out for those impacted by pension age equalisation between men and women with many claiming to have been unware of the changes.
Some 3.8 million women approaching pension age are believed to have been impacted by the policy move with campaigners noting it impacted their ability to save for retirement.
Speaking to press during his visit to the G20 summit in Rio, Starmer shared that Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) Secretary Liz Kendall will put forward a statement "on this in the not too distant future".
The Prime Minister added: "Obviously it’s a very serious report, and the response will be set out by the DWP secretary."
Waspi campaigners previously shared their disappointment following Chancellor Rachel Reeves's Autumn Budget with state pension compensation being left out of the fiscal statement. The Budget confirmed pay outs for those impacted by the respective Post Office Horizon and infected blood scandals.
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Starmer has given a hint about the fate of Waspi compensation
PA
Last year, the Parliament and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) found the Government guilty of "maladministration" over its handling of changes to the state pension age.
In a follow-up report, the PHSO determined that women born in the 1950s could be entitled to a Level 4 amount of compensation, which comes to between £1,250 - £2,950.
However, it is the responsibility of Parliament to put forward a compensation package to be voted on by MPs and no such package has been introduced in the last eight months.
This month, the Waspi campaign warned that 300,000 women have passed away since the fight for state pension compensation began with one dying every 13 minutes.
Angela Madden, the campaign's chair, shared: "It is both distressing and tragic that after nine long years of campaigning, 300,000 Waspi women have died without seeing the justice they are due."
Pensions Minister Emma Reynolds told the Commons earlier this month that the new Labour Government hoped “to be able to update the House in the coming weeks”.
She told MPs: “The ombudsman took six years to look at what are a range of complex cases, and we are looking at the complexity of those cases.
“I was the first minister in six years to meet with representatives of the Waspi campaign. We hope to be able to update the House in the coming weeks.”
Based on the PHSO's report, impacted women should have had at least 28 months’ more individual notice of any changed from the DWP.
According to the ombudsman, women who were not informed of the changes would have been able to alter their retirement plans with additional notice.
A DWP spokesperson previously told GB News: “This was a serious report, requiring serious consideration. We will continue to listen respectfully to the women involved, and ensure we take on board any lessons learnt."
GB News has contacted the Waspi campaign for further comment.
