Aberdeenshire MP Richard Thomson calls on UK Government to start compensation preparations for WASPI women

Gordon MP Richard Thomson has called on the UK Government to start the process of issuing compensatory payments to the women of Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI) affected by the changes to their state pensions.

During 2021, the findings of an investigation by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, condemned the UK Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) for “maladministration” in relation to changes to women’s state pensions.

The Ombudsman’s findings vindicated the campaign by WASPI and condemned the DWP for failing to provide “accurate, adequate and timely” information about changes to the state pension age for women.

Now, following research carried out for the WASPI campaign by Statista which show nearly quarter of a million women will have died waiting for pension compensation by the end of this year, Mr Thomson has written to Pensions Minister Guy Opperman asking him to start the process of implementing compensatory payments, or interim payments, to those affected.

Commenting, MP Richard Thomson said: “I continue to receive regular approaches from constituents on the injustice they are suffering because of the UK Government’s maladministration, which has already been confirmed by the Parliamentary Ombudsman.

“Detailed analysis has now been carried out for the WASPI campaign which concludes with the shocking statistic that 220,190 women will have died in the seven years since the campaign started to get women born in the 1950s compensation for failures to inform them about the pension age moving from 60 to 66.

“It is estimated that the UK Government will save something in the order of £3.8billion on compensation likely to be awarded as a result of this particularly grim statistic.

“I’m therefore asking the Pensions Minister to do the decent thing and start the process now of putting in place compensatory payments – or even interim payments – before more of the women affected pass away.”

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