The Government is set to review its decision regarding compensation for women born in the 1950s affected by changes to the state pension age following the emergence of new evidence. Secretary of Work and Pensions, Pat McFadden, revealed that undisclosed evidence from 2007 had surfaced, which was not presented to the previous Secretary, Liz Kendall, when the decision to deny compensation to WASPI women was made last year.
However, McFadden clarified to MPs that the reconsideration did not guarantee compensation for the affected women. Campaigners claim that approximately 3.6 million women were not adequately informed about the adjustments raising the retirement age from 60 to 65 to align with men.
Since the initial calls for compensation in 2015, an estimated 394,000 women have passed away. WASPI campaigners have been pursuing a judicial review scheduled to be heard in the High Court next month, but the Government has withdrawn from the process to reevaluate the evidence.
During a statement in the Commons, Mr. McFadden said, “We will handle this situation fairly and transparently. Revisiting this decision does not imply that the Government will automatically decide to provide financial compensation. The review process will commence immediately, and updates will be provided to the House once a decision is reached.”
No specific timeline has been announced for the review process, potentially causing further delays for the affected individuals. This development comes after the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman recommended compensations ranging from £1,000 to £2,950 per person in March 2024.
In December, the former Work and Pensions Secretary, Liz Kendall, apologized for the 28-month delay in notifying those impacted by the changes. However, Kendall rejected the ombudsman’s recommendation for compensations, arguing that the projected £10.5 billion compensation expense was not a justifiable use of taxpayers’ funds.
Campaigners have contended that the affected individuals were treated unjustly and were deprived of the ability to adequately plan for their retirement. Angela Madden, Chair of Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI), expressed, “For a decade, we have been advocating for compensation. The government has fiercely opposed us every step of the way. Today’s announcement marks significant progress. We are consulting legal experts to understand the implications for our judicial review.”
Madden added, “The government now acknowledges its error, and we are pleased they are taking steps to address it correctly. We urge them to expedite the process as a WASPI woman dies every 13 minutes. The only rightful action is to promptly compensate the 3.6 million WASPI women who have long awaited justice.”
Numerous Labour MPs, including Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves, publicly supported the WASPI campaign while in opposition. The party had pledged to provide some form of compensation for WASPI women in their 2017 and 2019 manifestos under former leader Jeremy Corbyn. However, this commitment was not reiterated in the manifesto for the latest election victory.