Yesterday the government announced it wouldn't pay compensation to Women Against State Pension Inequality (Waspi) women, following a change to the age at which women born in the 1950s can claim their pensions.

Today, we've been covering the reaction to that decision.

In March, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) had recommended the women be paid up to £2,950 each after it found "maladministration" in how the changing pension age was communicated.

But 90% of affected women knew about the change, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer told the Commons today.

Starmer, Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall had been among those who backed the Waspi campaign when Labour was in opposition.

• The PM said delays in communicating changes to the state pension age for women born in the 1950s were "unacceptable"
• Campaigners say they've lost out on years of state pension, worth many thousands of pounds
• Women born in the 50s told BBC Radio 5 Live they were "furious" about the decision
• Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said Starmer and his cabinet had been playing politics with Waspi women

You can read more about Starmer's position and the opposition's reaction in our article covering the decision. We're also looking at reaction from the women affected.

Thanks for joining us.

Image source, PA

The fallout from the UK government's decision to award no compensation to the Waspi campaigners continues to pose difficulties north of the border.

Scottish Labour's deputy leader Jackie Baillie is the latest to say she believes the decision not to compensate so called Waspi women, for the failure to adequately communicate changes to the state pension age, is wrong.

The Dumbarton MSP has campaigned alongside the women in the past and says she's disappointed with the UK government announcement on the issue.

She argues there should have been a compromise to target the women who were most affected.

Holly Phillips
BBC Radio Humberside

Sue Craft, from Healing, Grimsby, retired to look after her terminally-ill husband, and says she had her "finances in place" to claim her state pension when she turned 60.

When her husband died, Craft found out the widow's pension only covered her for 52 weeks, and her state pension would come in when she turned 66.

She says: "They've stolen six years of my pension and now they're saying I can't even have a winter fuel allowance. They're hitting me all sides and I'm very, very angry.”

Craft adds she has to think before putting on the heating, book a holiday or go out for a meal.

"A lot of ladies are still working into their 70s because they just cannot afford to live. We're entitled to that pension. We've worked hard all our lives," she says.

She is asking for the government to vote on the matter in Parliament and offer those affected compensation, adding: "We just want a little bit of compensation to say, 'we're sorry, we've made a mistake, we hope this helps.'”

The government has "no plans" for a vote on whether women affected by changes to the state pension age should be compensated, Downing Street says.

Replying to a question about whether there would be a vote, the PM's spokesman says: "There are no plans for a vote.

He adds: "The Secretary of State set out the statement in the House yesterday and gave MPs an opportunity to have their say on this issue."

What did Angela Rayner say about the Waspi women?published at 13:21 Greenwich Mean Time 18 December 2024

13:21 GMT 18 December 2024

Image source, Reuters

By Tamara Kovacevic

Earlier at PMQs, Kemi Badenoch criticised Labour over its previous positions on the Waspi campaigners - women who have been calling for compensation, saying that previous governments failed to tell them - or provide adequate notice - about a change to women’s pension age.

Yesterday, the government said they would not get compensation.

Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner, like Keir Starmer and other members of his government, have spoken out in the past in support of the campaigners.

In a 2019 BBC interview, ahead of the general election - Rayner said: “They [the government] stole their [Waspi women’s] pensions…we’ve said we’d right that injustice and within the five years of the Labour government we’ll compensate them for the money that they’ve lost.”

This pledge was part of Labour’s 2019 manifesto but it was not mentioned in the party’s 2024 manifesto.

As we've reported, Sir Keir Starmer told Diane Abbott in the Commons earlier that the government couldn't afford a compensation bill of "tens of billions" for Waspi women.

He also answered a question on the topic from Plaid Cymru MP Ben Lake, who said "in 2022 the prime minister supported calls for fair and fast compensation".

Starmer didn't deny his previous support, and replied: "Between 2005 and 2007 there was, I think, a 28-month delay in letters to women born in the 1950s about changes to pension age.

"That was unacceptable and it was right that the government apologised for that.

"In 2011 the former chancellor George Osborne accelerated those changes with very little notice, that equally was unacceptable and Labour opposed it at the time.

"It is a serious issue, it is a complex issue, the research shows, as he [Lake] knows, that 90% of those impacted knew about the changes that were taking place.

"And I'm afraid to say that taxpayers simply can't afford the tens of billions of pounds in compensation when the evidence shows that 90% of those impacted did know about it, that's because of the state of our economy."

Another question on Waspi compensation at PMQs from the SNP's Dave Doogan, who accuses Sir Keir Starmer of being a "one-trick phoney prime minister".

The MP for Angus and Perthshire Glens tells the Commons before the election, the PM "lined up for many photos with Waspi women saying he'd have their backs and he's just betrayed them in the most scandalous way possible".

"This is now the defining characteristic of this one-trick phoney prime minister, who says one thing and does another," he adds.

Starmer hit back: "They (SNP) used to ask those questions from this sort of area with very many MPs not so long ago. That all changed in July and he's now carping from right up there. We can hardly hear him."

Catherine Moore
BBC News Northern Ireland

More reaction coming in from Northern Ireland, and SDLP MP Claire Hanna says the government has failed Waspi women, adding that the decision will "force [them] back to the courts".

She says the women were given "some hope" by the parliamentary ombudsman's report after years of campaigning, and the decision "will have come as a real blow".

"Women consistently carry a disproportionate burden of austerity and that generation in particular fell further behind their male counterparts in wage growth, rates of occupational pensions and financial security in retirement," she says.

"These factors, plus the finding of maladministration, clearly merited recognition by the current government."

The head of the body which wrote the independent government review recommending the compensation in March tells BBC Woman's Hour that going forward, government communication is "completely critical".

Rebecca Hilsenrath, who oversaw the report, says: "Although I know this is hard for the Waspi women to hear, in many parts it is positive.

"(The government) have apologised which is something that, in our experience, complainants need and want to hear. They've recognised that they did it wrong and that this is an injustice."

She says she thinks it is "a win for future practice by government".

"What I'm hoping is that the government is now going to put in place an improvement plan that this is not going to happen to future recipients of pensions or other benefits."

Also in Prime Minister's Questions, veteran Labour MP Diane Abbott says "we promised them justice", referring to the Waspi campaigners.

"Does he (Keir Starmer) really understand how let down Waspi women feel today?" she asks.

In response, Starmer says "90% of those impacted did know about the change - and in those circumstances, the taxpayer simply can't afford the burden of tens of billions of pounds of compensation".

He adds "I do understand the concern, of course I do".

"For years, the prime minister and his cabinet played politics with the Waspi women."

This was Conservative Leader Kemi Badenoch's opening remark after her Christmas wishes - for this last Prime Minister's Questions of the year.

She said Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner had previously said Tories had "stolen" the women's pensions and promised to compensate them in full - "another broken promise" says Badenoch.

To follow PMQs blow-by-blow, head to our live page.

Image source, Getty Images

Good afternoon and, if you’re just joining us, welcome to our coverage of the row between the Women Against State Pension Inequality (Waspi) campaign and the government.

The row was ignited yesterday when ministers said they wouldn't pay compensation to millions of women hit by changes to the state pension age.

Here’s a look at what reactions have come through today:

• Waspi campaigners are highlighting comments made by Labour leaders before they came to power in July in which they appeared to stand with Waspi women
• Many women have told the BBC of their profound anger and frustration with the government’s decision - a Waspi spokeswoman says they will not be “giving up the fight”
• The head of the Ombudsman’s office, which recommended compensation for "Waspi women" in March, criticised the government for refusing to issues payouts
• The Labour Party appears divided on the issue, with some MPs voicing their disappointment with the government's stance, while ministers and the chancellor have come out to defend the decision
• And the Scottish National Party wants a Commons vote on the issue, calling on Tory and Lib Dem leaders to use their Opposition Day allocations to force a vote

For a timeline on the row over Waspi payments, look here.

Catherine Moore
BBC News Northern Ireland

Image source, PA Media

The government's decision not to compensate Waspi women has been branded "deeply disappointing" by Northern Ireland’s deputy first minister.

Posting on social media, Emma Little-Pengelly says: "My mother is a Waspi woman and she and many women were treated appallingly and shabbily and deserve that to be recognised."

Alliance MP Sorcha Eastwood describes the decision as “indefensible”.

She says it is "a cruel betrayal of the millions of women who have already endured financial hardship and emotional distress due to the government's failure to adequately communicate state pension age changes".

"To apologise but then refuse compensation adds insult to injury and shows a blatant disregard for justice," she adds.

"These women were denied the information and time needed to plan for their futures."

As we've been reporting, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman has criticised the government for "maladministration" in how it handled its communications around changing the state pension age for women, and recommended compensation be paid.

The ombudsman is an independent complaint handling service - it got involved when people complained that the government had failed to provide adequate information about the changes.

The ombudsman says it does not have the power to compel the government to follow its recommendations.

In its March report on changes to the state pension age, it said it was "extremely rare for government departments not to comply with recommendations we make following an investigation".

It said then that given the government had led it to "strongly doubt" it would provide a remedy to the complaints, and "given the scale" of the maladministration and "urgent need for a remedy", it took the "rare but necessary step of asking Parliament to intervene".

Some Labour politicians have voiced their opposition to the government's decision regarding Waspi payouts.

One of them is the Labour MP for Blyth and Ashington, Ian Lavery, who says: “Having worked closely with the Waspi women over the years I’m very disappointed with today’s announcement.

"I do not believe that cherry picking recommendations from the ombudsman’s report is at all helpful.

"The announcement today is quite frankly unacceptable. I will continue to fight for justice for all of the women involved in this."

Rachael Maskell, the Labour MP for York Central also broke ranks, saying some MPs were “in shock” at the government's announcement, especially "just prior to Christmas".

Neither Labour or the Conservatives committed to payouts in their 2024 election manifestos, but in 2019, under Jeremy Corbyn's leadership, Labour had said they would deliver full compensation.

Image source, Getty Images

Anne Potter, co-ordinator for Waspi Glasgow, Lanarkshire, Dunbartonshire and Renfrewshire, tells the Good Morning Scotland programme she is still, shocked, annoyed and very angry by the UK government's decision to reject compensation for women hit by changes to the state pension age.

She explains before the election, Labour MPs had shown great support for the Waspi women, including Sir Keir Starmer who, at the Scottish Labour Party conference, signed a paper supporting "fair and fast compensation for Waspi women".

"We feel as if we've been betrayed by this UK government," she says.

"As it stands just now, people are beginning to wonder why on earth the Labour government was ever voted in."

Chancellor Rachel Reeves said she understood campaigners "feel disappointed by this decision", but the parliamentary ombudsman had said that "around 90% of women did know that these changes were coming".

Image source, Getty Images

Women born in the 1950s who say they were not properly informed of the rise in state pension age to bring them into line with men have been calling into BBC Radio 5 Live.

Sue in Orpington says she is "absolutely furious".

"I was 59 when I was medically retired and I did not know that at that point I was going to have my pension cut by six years. When we put this government in power, it was on the proviso that Starmer actually understood," she says, adding she will "never ever vote Labour again".

But Yvonne in Bedale, who is affected by the changes, says she is "furious that all these women just did not know what was going on".

More women should have known because there was "so much publicity" about the changes, she says, adding, "I just get very cross because I just think the whole campaign was built on a false premise".

Sandra in Cowes says the situation is "disgusting" and she was not aware of the changes.

"I really did struggle," she says, adding that she had to sell her house and live off her savings for six years.

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has said "the vast majority" of women knew the changes were coming.

Let's head north where the UK government's announcement is putting the Scottish Labour party under pressure.

First Minister John Swinney has called the Waspi pension decision an "embarrassment".

Scottish Labour social justice spokesperson Paul O'Kane tells the Good Morning Scotland programme an injustice had been suffered.

"There has been an apology for what has happened," he says.

"I'm not denying that this is obviously a very difficult situation and I want to recognise firstly that injustice that was recognised yesterday."

O'Kane explains he still thinks there should be some form of compensation for the women affected, putting him at odds with the UK government.

The Waspi campaign says it is not against gender equalisation of the state pension age - instead, it's about how these changes have been made.

Specifically, it argues that around 3.6 million women have lost out financially because the government did not adequately communicate the changes over a number of years, meaning people could not properly plan for their retirement.

The government announced its plans to raise the state pension age for women in 1993, with the plan being to increase it gradually between 2010 and 2020. In 2010, the Conservative-Lib Dem coalition then sped up the process.

According to a parliamentary ombudsman, the government met the expected standards on communication on this issue between 1995 and 2004.

But it said "decision-making between 2005 and 2007 led to a 28-month delay in starting to send letters to 1950s-born women".

The ombudsman said research reported in 2004 showed information about the changes was not reaching the people who needed it most.

But the government "failed to take this feedback into account properly", the ombudsman said. The government proposed writing directly to the women affected in November 2006, but did not do so until December 2007.

Kevin Peachey
Cost of living correspondent

Many campaigners - including callers to the BBC today - have spoken about how they lost out on years of state pension, worth many thousands of pounds, as a result of the previous governments’ decisions.

One important point to make is that the ombudsman did not recommend compensation for “lost” pensions.

That was not its remit. It said payouts should be made for poor communication of state pension changes, adding that this should be between £1,000 and £2,950 for those affected.

But all this was subject to the government accepting these recommendations in full, and laying out who would get the money - something it has now rejected.

Image source, Getty Images