WASPI women are seething with anger as they said Labour’s King’s Speech failed to address a compensation scheme for women deprived of their rightful state pension.
The Women Against State Pension Inequality campaign, representing women born in the 1950s who have been hit hard by changes to the state pension age, has expressed deep disappointment following the speech on Wednesday, July 17.
The group feels let down by the new Prime Minister and his party for not seizing the chance to propose the much-needed compensation for the women they represent.
Angela Madden, the chair of WASPI, acknowledged some positive proposals in the speech but issued a stark warning to Labour about repeating past “disastrous mistakes”.
She stated: “Hundreds of MPs support WASPI’s calls for fair and fast compensation, yet the new Government has today missed an opportunity to deliver the justice that millions of 1950s-born women deserve.
“While we welcome the new legal duty of candour which will ensure Government departments hold their hands up when things go wrong, swift action to correct the disastrous mistakes of previous administrations went amiss.
“WASPI will continue to work cross-party to see financial redress proposals brought forward within the first 100 days of the new Parliament.”
Since its inception in 2015, WASPI has been tirelessly campaigning for justice for the 3.8 million women affected by the alterations to the state pension age. During the election period, the campaign implored all political parties to acknowledge these women and devise a compensation package to address their plight.
WASPI had high hopes that the government would outdo their predecessors and adhere to the Parliament and Health Service Ombudsman’s recommendations from earlier this year. The PHSO concluded that these women could be eligible for a level four payout, ranging between £1,250 and £3,700, due to insufficient information about the changes in the state pension age.
Although the figures were only disclosed earlier this year, the PHSO initially ruled in favour of WASPI and the women it represents in 2021 when it found the DWP guilty of maladministration. The ombudsman has since emphasised that it is Parliament’s responsibility to vote on the compensation.
The Tory party faced severe criticism from the campaign for failing to propose an amount, and in the lead-up to the election, neither the Tories nor Labour were able to commit a figure. This left the campaign with high expectations that the victorious party would announce it during the King’s Speech.
