New call for debate on WASPI campaign findings into impact of State Pension age changes on women

Twenty MPs have now signed an an Early Day Motion tabled by the SNP’s Patricia Gibson calling for a debate in Parliament into the “devastating impact of continuing unfair pension treatment of 1950s-born WASPI women” (Women Against State Pension Inequality). The North Ayrshire and Arran MP is also urging the UK Government to “respond promptly” to the findings from the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman’s (PHSO) report into the way the changes to the State Pension age were communicated.

The Shadow SNP spokesperson for environment, farming, agriculture and rural affairs is calling for the UK Government to make it clear that it will “recognise and recompense the injustices and suffering caused to WASPI women, of which one dies every thirteen minutes”. The WASPI campaign recently announced that over 250,000 women affected by State Pension age changes have died since their fight for justice began in 2015.

WASPI research suggests that nearly four million women saw their retirement plans ‘plunged into chaos’ at the last minute, after the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) – under successive governments – increased the State Pension age from 60 to 65, and later 66.

The WASPI campaign was formed to help millions of women get ‘fair and fast compensation’ after some of the worst affected were only given a few months’ notice of a six-year delay to their eligibility for the State Pension.

WASPI says that hundreds of thousands of women lost the opportunity to plan for their retirement as they were not notified of the changes soon enough. Three-in-five of the affected women say they had already retired or cut their working hours down by the time they found out they would not get their State Pension at 60.

As a result, many have fallen into financial hardship, with a recent WASPI survey indicating that nearly half (45%) of 1950s-born women have struggled to pay essential bills in the last year. Meanwhile, one-third have fallen into debt.

On a more sombre note, WASPI said that the ‘stark milestone’ of a quarter of a million women’s deaths since the campaign began eight years ago, suggests that approximately 15 per cent of all those affected by the increase to the State Pension age have since died.

In July 2021, the PHSO’s stage one investigation ruled that the DWP failed to communicate the age changes to those women with enough urgency, finding it guilty of ‘maladministration’. However, it was forced to row back on its Stage two report following a successful legal challenge by the WASPI campaign against the original draft, which was found to be unlawful.

A final stage three report will then recommend to the UK Government what level of compensation should be paid to affected women, but campaigners say women have waited long enough and ministers should act now.

Responding to the WASPI campaign survey findings, a DWP spokesperson previously said: “We support millions of people every year and our priority is ensuring they get the help and support to which they are entitled.

“The [UK] Government decided over 25 years ago it was going to make the State Pension age the same for men and women. Both the High Court and Court of Appeal have supported the actions of the DWP under successive governments dating back to 1995 and the Supreme Court refused the claimants permission to appeal.”

The Early Day Motion submitted by Patricia Gibson MP states: “That this House welcomes the publication of the findings of the Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI) campaign survey, which documents the devastating impact of continuing unfair pension treatment of 1950s-born WASPI women; is deeply concerned about the survey’s key findings, that one in four of the women affected by this pension scandal have struggled to buy food and basic essentials in the last six months, whilst a third have fallen into debt in the last six months; notes its findings that 61 per cent of those surveyed reported a range of lost employment opportunities, with 32 per cent of women being unable to secure alternative employment after attempting to re-join the workforce; recognises the mental, physical and emotional toll of additional years of work, of which these women were unaware and so for which they could not plan; calls on the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman to speedily conclude its investigations; and urges the Government to respond promptly to the Ombudsman’s report and make clear that it will recognise and recompense the injustices and suffering caused to WASPI women, of which one dies every thirteen minutes.”

What is an Early Day Motion?

An early day motion is a motion submitted for debate in the House of Commons for which no day has been fixed. However, as there is no specific time allocated to it, very few are debated.

What are Early Day Motion used for?

Early Day Motion are used to put on record the views of individual MPs or to draw attention to specific events or campaigns. By attracting the signatures of other MPs, they can be used to demonstrate the level of parliamentary support for a particular cause or point of view.

At time of writing, 20 MPs – mostly SNP – have signed the ‘Women Against State Pension Inequality campaign survey’ Early Day Motion – full list can be found on GOV.UK here.

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