New call for £10,000 State Pension age compensation for millions of women impacted by retirement changes

MPs have unanimously called for a vote in Parliament on whether compensation should be given to women born in the 1950s who have been affected by changes to the State Pension age. Some 21 MPs took part in a House of Commons debate on Thursday, secured by the SNP’s Patricia Gibson, which saw cross-party support for a compensation plan to be put in place for more than 3.8 million women affected by the changes.

On March 21, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) asked Parliament to identify ways to provide an appropriate remedy for those who have suffered injustice because of maladministration on the part of the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). The Ombudsman’s report suggested that compensation at level four, ranging between £1,000 and £2,950, could be appropriate for each of those affected.

The PHSO report said that compensating all women born in the 1950s at the level four range would involve spending between around £3.5 billion and £10.5 billion of public funds, adding “though we understand not all of them will have suffered injustice”. However, the SNP’s Alan Brown said the PHSO level four compensation proposal “feels wrong”.

The Kilmarnock and Loudoun MP said: “For the majority of the 3.8 million women affected, it feels like a smack in the face. Compensation of between £1,000 and £2,950 is an inadequate maximum payout.

“The WASPI APPG recommended level six for the worst affected, and my private Member’s Bill takes a similar approach. I have suggested a framework that follows the clear logic that those affected by the biggest increase in State Pension age, while in effect having the shortest notice period, should receive the most compensation.”

He continued: “As for the 2.5 million women who have had to wait five years or more to access their pension, it would be absurd to award them just level four compensation of less than £3,000.

“In my framework, they would be allocated compensation at PHSO level six, which is about £10,000.

“Those who have not had to wait quite as long, but who were still badly affected in some cases, will get levels four and five, with a minority on lower levels. I thank Members from across the House who have signed my private Member’s Bill.”

The second reading of Alan Brown’s State Pension Age (Compensation) Bill is due to be heard in Parliament today (May 17).

Former SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford, former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and former shadow chancellor John McDonnell, pressed for compensation to be put in place before the House of Commons rises for the summer recess on July 23.

This date was also put forward by Labour MP Sir Stephen Timms, chair of the Work and Pensions Committee, in a letter to the Work and Pensions Secretary Mel stride on Wednesday.

Mr Blackford, MP for Ross, Skye and Lochaber, said: “The DWP has to play a part in bringing forward proposals for a financial redress scheme to Parliament before the summer recess and these proposals must be amendable.

“Most importantly, any process must clear the parliamentary process before the summer recess. We do not have long. We have less than nine weeks of parliamentary time before recess. This means within days the DWP must come forward with proposals.”

Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said the Government could resolve matters by undertaking to bring forward a “simple compensation scheme” to help all those women affected.

He said: “What we need is justice and it’s up to this Parliament to deliver that justice for women who have worked so hard in their lives to deliver services for all of us, that we’ve all benefited from, we owe it to them and we can do it now.”

Labour former minister Sir George Howarth said a compensation scheme cannot be deferred until after a change in Government. He said: “My fear is we will not deal with it urgently, and let me be clear, I do not believe that allowing the clock to run down until the forthcoming general election is an acceptable option.”

Conservative MP Peter Aldous, co-chairman of the State Pension Inequality for Women All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) said it would create a “constitutional gap” if the recommendations of the ombudsman were not acted on, adding that “a mechanism should be put in place before the summer recess”.

He said: “Finite resources are not an excuse for failing to provide a fair remedy. If Parliament chooses to do nothing, that will undermine the ombudsman. The DWP should respect what Parliament recommends.”

Responding to the points raised during the debate, DWP Pensions Minister Paul Maynard said the UK Government recognises the importance of providing information on changes to the State Pension age “in good time” to help individuals plan for their retirement.

Intervening, Labour’s John McDonnell said Parliament needs the proposals “rapidly, certainly before the recess”.

Mr Maynard said he had heard this message “clearly”, adding: “We do not wish undue delay, but as I keep saying it is a complex issue, not just a matter of ticking a box, so it needs to be got right.”

Closing the debate, Patricia Gibson said: “The motion garnered unanimous support from Back-Bench speakers, which expressed the will of the House, but unfortunately the contributions from the Labour and Government Front Benches did not reflect that cross-party consensus.

“Justice is too important to be denied for fear of the price tag. I remind the House that the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman concluded that ignoring the findings of the report would create an unprecedented constitutional gap in the protection of the rights of citizens who had been failed by a public body in respect of ensuring access to justice. That constitutional gap presents a danger to our very democracy.”

Commenting after the debate, Angela Madden, Chair of Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI), said: “We have been overwhelmed with support from MPs across the House who are calling for a Parliamentary vote on delivering compensation.

“Each and every MP has an average of 5,500 WASPI women in their constituency and it is imperative they deliver compensation to those they represent.

“The Government must listen to the Parliamentary Ombudsman, the cross-party Work and Pensions Committee and the clear mood of the House of Commons. That means giving MPs a say on the compensation proposals they bring forward as soon as possible.”

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