Victory for WASPI women but the fight goes on

A LANDMARK ruling by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman could benefit around 5,000 women in Ceredigion born in the 1950s.

As we reported in The Herald on

Friday, on March 21 the Parliamentary & Health Service Ombudsman published his final report into the injustice caused by the Department for Work & Pensions (DWP)’s poor communication to 1950s women that their state pension age had increased.

The Ombudsman recommends that the DWP makes an apology to the women concerned and they receive compensation of between £1,000 and £2,950. He calls on Parliament to take his recommendations forward.

In the Commons yesterday (Monday) Pensions Minister Mel Stride faced a barrage of support for the WASPI women from MPs of all parties, calling for urgent compensation. His response was that he will look closely at the report and consider its contents. He refused to give a timescale for doing so.

“We have waited five years for this report,” said Pamela Judge, Joint Co- ordinator of Ceredigion Women Against State Pension Injustice (WASPI). “We welcome the recommendation of an apology and compensation though the level of compensation is disappointing. An All- Party Parliamentary Group of MPs recommended compensation at the top level on the Ombudsman’s scale, at least £ 10,000 which is much more realistic. We call on MPs to sort this out quickly. This is urgent – a WASPI woman dies every 13 minutes”

Ceredigion MP Ben Lake commented: “It is high time that Parliament ensures that 1950s born women are finally afforded the justice that they deserve. The Ombudsman’s report has taken years to be completed. It officially acknowledges that WASPI women have fallen foul of maladministration by the Department for Work and Pensions. We cannot waste any time in bringing forward a compensation package which reflects the scale of the injustice suffered.

“Members of Parliament from all political parties have expressed their support for the WASPI campaign. Now we have an opportunity to deliver on these promises. We have not a moment to lose.”

Joint Co- ordinator Melinda Williams added: “The lack of notice we received that our pension age had changed was devastating for thousands of local women whose plans for retirement were wrecked. We suffered injustice and need compensation now”.