The Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI) campaign is intensifying its battle with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) over denied compensation payments of £2,950. Campaigners are preparing a formal legal challenge against the Labour government, citing “legal errors” in the decision-making process.
WASPI’s legal team plans to present these errors to the Government, allowing 14 days for an official response before potentially escalating the case to the High Court. The campaigners argue that the Government’s decision was based on limited and narrow data regarding awareness of changes to the state pension age.
It is estimated that up to 3.6 million women born in the 1950s have suffered financially due to how the Government implemented pension age changes, motivating the WASPI campaign’s launch in 2015. However, last year, the Labour Party faced public backlash after refusing compensation despite a March 2024 ruling by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) affirming that affected women should receive payments.
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Angela Madden, chairwoman of WASPI, stated, “Women affected by the Government’s failures have waited long enough. If ministers refuse to heed the independent ombudsman, their own MPs, and millions across the country, we will make them listen in court.”
Just before Christmas, Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden reaffirmed the Government’s stance after reviewing evidence: no compensation payments would be made to those affected.
A DWP spokesperson said, “The Secretary of State outlined the Government’s position in Parliament, acknowledging maladministration and apologizing to the women involved. Our focus now is on delivering an action plan to improve how the DWP communicates state pension information in the future.”