Labour councillors vote to condemn Government as Council unanimously backs WASPI Women
Labour Party members at Hull City Council have backed a motion condemning the Government's decision to not compensate WASPI women, calling for a reconsideration.
Women Against State Pension Inequality, or WASPI, is a campaign group that fights for compensation for women born in the 1950s who were adversely affected by the 1995 Pensions Act which set out plans to raise the state pension age for women to 65 from 60. Raising the age to 65 for women put them in line with the age at which men could receive their state pension at the time.
Despite the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) saying that women born between April 1950 and April 1960 were "owed" money because of increases in the state pension age, the Government's Work and Pensions Secretary, Liz Kendall, recently announced that WASPI women will not be receiving compensation.
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Criticism of the decision has been amplified by many Labour Party MPs, including the Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer having previously shown strong support for the WASPI campaign. Two of Hull's Labour MPs, Dame Diana Johnson and Karl Turner had both been vocal on social in their support for the WASPI campaign prior to the Government's decision.
When asked his opinion on the WASPI issue during the Full Council meeting the Leader of Hull City Council, Liberal Democrat Councillor Mike Ross said: "I do think it is really quite shameful that the [Labour] party campaigned in the way they did on this issue, had their photos taken alongside WASPI women and campaigners, then to do what they've done in Government. It is really actually quite shameful."
The Council backed a motion put forward by Lib Dem Cllr Cheryl Payne of the Derringham Ward "to censure and condemn the decision made by the Labour Government to not compensate WASPI women."
The motion also sought to make the "Leader of the Council write to each of the local MPs to express the Council's deep dissatisfaction with this decision and ask them what support and advice they can give those who continue to suffer from this shameful decision."
Lib Dem councillor for Holderness and WASPI Woman Cllr Jackie Dad added: "It is utter hypocrisy from this Labour Government and our local Labour MPs to turn their backs on WASPI women."
The Council's Labour opposition group tabled an amendment that was successful in adding a line stating the " Council recommits to supporting the WASPI women campaign for compensation and calls upon the Government to reconsider its position."
However, other parts of the Labour amendment, including the line: " Council also notes that it was the coalition government that accelerated the change to the pension age in 2010, which resulted in many women being caught out," and the removal of the word "shameful" in describing the Government's decision to not compensate WASPI women was not passed by councillors.
The leader of the Hull Labour Group, Cllr Daren Hale said Labour's amendment sought to clarify that "previous governments' hands weren't completely clean in this."
He added: "The Labour Party has only been able to miss-step and take the wrong decision it did on this because it [the coalition government] had accelerated it forward."
Despite parts of their amendments not being passed, all present Labour councillors joined forces with Lib Dem councillors in voting for the motion criticising the Government's decision.
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