Dorset women vow to continue fight for compensation over pension changes
The WASPI campaign estimate millions of women lost out financially because the government didn't adequately communicate changes in the state pension age
Dorset women who were affected by changes to the state pension age have told us they feel “betrayed” by the government.
It comes after Labour announced they would not be compensating WASPI woman as it would be unfair on the taxpayer.
Shelagh Simmons of the Solent WASPI group said: “The ombudsman agreed with us and made it clear that there had been maladministration and that we should get compensation for the mistakes the Department for Work and Pensions made.
“Labour came to power on a promise of restoring trust and integrity back in government but undermining their own watchdog/ombudsman certainly isn't the way to do it.”
For decades the state pension age for women was 60. An increase to 65, phased in between 2010 and 2020, was included in the 1995 Pensions Act, but in 2011 the coalition government sped up the process.
Large numbers of older women were penalised financially and are now struggling with living costs because of the way the decision to raise the state pension age for women was made and communicated.
Mrs Simmons told us: “Some women in my group have had to sell their homes to help plug the gap while they wait six years for their state pension.
“We've had women whose divorce settlements were based on state pension age of 60 and overall, it’s just not been good for our mental or even physical health.”
Many women were forced to work up to six years longer than expected or face financial hardship in older age.
Others said they had always expected to receive their pension at 60 and had made their financial plans on that basis.
Meanwhile, some only discovered their state pension age had increased by several years after giving up work.
Mrs Simmons told us she was in “utter shock” when the Prime Minister, along with some Labour MPs, agreed not to compensate the millions of women affected.
She said: “We've been led to believe by Labour during the election period that they were fully supportive, and many MPs stood with us in calling for ‘fair and fast compensation for WASPI women.
“Now we feel that perhaps they picked on us because we're older women and maybe think ‘we don’t matter’ or ‘we won’t complain’.”
But she assured the members of her group and the millions affected “won’t give up the fight”.
“There is an all-party parliamentary group working on the issue, so this isn't going to go away and neither are we,” Mrs Simmons concluded.