North Derbyshire based WASPI chairman urges swift delivery of pension compensation plan by new Government
The north Derbyshire based chief of a national campaign group is urging the new Prime Minister and Government not to let down millions of Fifties born women who are fighting for pension compensation.
Angela Madden, who chairs Women Against State Pension Inequality ( WASPI) and lives in Old Brampton, said: “Hundreds of candidates who actively support WASPI's calls for fair and fast compensation have been elected to this new Parliament, including 72 Liberal Democrats who have so far been steadfast in their commitment to 1950s’ born women and we look forward to working with them to achieve justice.
"Labour has been given a strong mandate for delivering change with such a large majority. It is now time for them to make good on their past record of support to deliver a compensation scheme, preferably starting that work off in the first 100 days.
“Anything else would be to let down millions of 1950s born women at the very first hurdle.”
More than 3.6 million women received as little as 12 months’ notice of a six-year hike to State Pension age, plunging their retirement plans and personal finances into disarray.
In 2021 an initial report by the Ombudsman into how the Department of Work and Pensions handled notifying these women of the impending change to their State Pension eligibility age found maladministration on the part of the government body. In March 2024, the Ombudsman suggested that each Fifties born woman affected by the change in State Pension age eligibility should receive a payout of between £1,000 and £2,950.
Angela, who lives in Old Brampton, said: “To ignore the government's own independent watchdog would set the wrong tone for a government looking to make change. Especially a government who has committed to the "highest standard of integrity and honesty" and will introduce what it calls a "Hillsborough Law" which will place a legal duty of candour on public servants and authorities.
“Locally, we have new MPs. We contacted them during the election campaign and will be updating them fully on what some 6,000 WASPI women in each constituency would like to see from them. Toby Perkins is a long term supporter of WASPI, and has indicated that he will be pressing the government for action on the PHSO report without delay.
"Sir Kier Starmer himself said that the Conservatives should have resolved our issue in the last parliament, and his new administration will pick it up without undue delay. We had a series of meetings with Liz Kendall and her colleagues when they were the Shadow Work and Pensions team and will be picking that up as soon as she is available to meet with us. Hopefully our past "respectful engagement" can quickly turn to working on solutions.”
However, speaking to BBC Breakfast today (Monday), the Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Darren Jones MP, said that more work was to be done on a suitable compensation plan. Mr Jones said: “Before the election, the Ombudsman reported on some of the processes WASPI women were subject to about the change in the (State) Pension age, what we haven't got to yet is a level of report or detail about the eligibility for compensation or the different types of schemes that might need to be designed to support people who are in different circumstances.”