Waspi women decision 'a slap in the face to us'

Three sisters have described the government's decision not to pay compensation in the "Waspi" women pension case as a "slap in the face".

The Parliamentary Ombudsman said more than three million women born in the 1950s did not get adequate notice of the changes to the rises in the state pension age and should be compensated.

Waspi campaigners Mary Waterhouse, 72, Susan Dutton, 69, and Norma Elkinton, 67, from Blackpool, said the government had "let them down".

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has defended the government's decision, saying "given the vast majority of people did know about these changes, I didn't judge it would be the best use of taxpayers' money to pay an expensive compensation bill".

The Women Against State Pension Inequality (Waspi) said women born in the 1950s were not properly informed their state pension age would rise from 60 to 65 (now 66).

Nine months ago, a parliamentary ombudsman recommended compensation of between £1,000 and £2,950.

Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall told the Commons on Tuesday, it would not happen.

"Given the vast majority of women knew the state age was increasing, the government does not believe paying a flat rate to all women at a cost of up to £10.5bn would be a fair or proportionate use of taxpayers money," she said.

Kendall has previously spoke of the "injustice" the Waspi women faced, with a post from 2019 still on Kendall's website about her commitment to the campaign.

Ms Dutton said: "When she talks about the burden on the taxpayer, we were and still are the taxpayer.

"It absolutely infuriates me. I have never been so angry," adding that she believed most women had "lost about £48,000".

Ms Waterhouse said: "I can't tell you how let down we feel."

Ms Elkinton added: "It's a slap in the face to us."

She said the role of the parliamentary ombudsman was now pointless.

"What's the point in having an ombudsman if their judgements doesn't mean anything?

"That wasted six years. How much did all that cost? Their government department was set up to tackle injustice such as this."

Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman, Rebecca Hilsenrath, said: "I welcome the government's recognition that mistakes were made, and the commitment from the Secretary of State to make sure this never happens again.

"However, the government's decision not to accept our recommendations in full is disappointing and will have been hard for the women to hear."

The sisters who have been campaigning for eight years have vowed to carry on their work.

"We're not stopping and we'll carry on fighting for justice," Ms Waterhouse said.

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