State Pension age compensation Bill for WASPI women delayed until next month

SNP MP Alan Brown has urged the UK Government to “do the right thing” and the Labour Party “to commit” to his State Pension Age (Compensation) Bill “if they were to win an election” ahead of its second reading which has been delayed until next month. The Bill was due to be debated in Parliament on Friday, April 19, however, the Kilmarnock and Loudoun MP shared on social media that “Westminster wouldn’t provide debate time” so he has rescheduled the second reading to May 17.

Scotland’s First Minister Humza Yousaf told Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI) campaigners outside the Scottish Parliament on Thursday that the SNP “will not rest until they receive the justice they deserve”.

He also confirmed that he has written to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, urging them to be “on the right side of history” in delivering compensation for women impacted by changes to the State Pension age.

Posting on X, formerly Twitter, the SNP MP wrote on Friday: “Today should have been the 2nd reading for my WASPI compensation bill. Westminster wouldn’t provide debate time so I have rescheduled to May 17th. In the meantime I will press the UK Government to do the right thing and for Labour to commit to this if they were to win an election.”

After a six-year investigation, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) concluded on March 21 that women born in the 1950s, affected by short notice changes to their State Pension age, should be compensated.

The Ombudsman then asked Parliament to intervene and “act swiftly” to make sure a compensation scheme is established.

Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Mel Stride appeared before the House on March 25 and said the UK Government will give its response to the findings once it has had “sufficient time” to digest the 100-page report.

However, Acting Chair of the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Select Committee (PACAC), David Jones MP, has written to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Mel Stride MP, asking when he plans to publish a response to the PHSO report and update Parliament.

Mr Jones wrote: “On 25h March 2024, you gave a statement to the House of Commons following the publication of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman's report into the communication of state pension age changes to women born in the 1950s.

“In the statement, you committed to providing a further update to the House of Commons once the Government has considered the PHSO report's findings and said that it will continue to engage fully and constructively with Parliament. You also said that the Government ‘will not unduly delay our response’.”

He continued: “The Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee has within its remit a responsibility to scrutinise the work of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman.

“This includes following up on reports that the PHSO lay before the House of Commons. Therefore, we ask that you write to update us about the timetable for the publication of your response to the PHSO's report, and when you intend to update Parliament on the statement you made on 25th March. Such a timetable would provide reassurance and clarity to the Committee and to the PHSO.”

But there is hope on the horizon for millions of women born in the 1950s affected by changes to their State Pension age after SNP MP Patricia Gibson presented an Early Day Motion (EDM) to the Backbench Business Committee last week and secured time in Parliament for a debate on the UK Government committing to “accepting the findings of the report and how we move on from there”, not specifically about the value of any redress.

Interim Chair of the Committee, Bob Blackman MP, suggested that due to the number of MPs keen to take part in the debate - 60 have backed the EDM - it would be more practical for an afternoon session in the House of Commons in May, after the North Ayrshire and Arran MP highlighted that “due to the nature of the debate, a lot of constituents will be asking their MPs to attend”.