WASPI Women in Limbo as Labour Rejects GBP 1,000 – GBP 2,950 Ombudsman Compensation Plan

The Labour government has created controversy by disregarding the recommendation from the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) to grant compensation between GBP 1,000 and GBP 2,950 to WASPI (Women Against State Pension Inequality) women. Pensions Minister Torsten Bell characterized the decision as unusual but not unprecedented. The decision leaves thousands of women who have been impacted by the changes to the pension age for women in limbo.

The WASPI campaign is made up of women born in the 1950s whose state pension age was increased from 60 to 65 and then to 66 and often without sufficient notice. The Ombudsman investigation found there had been ‘maladministration’ by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) which had also failed to send appropriate communications regarding the changes within a reasonable timeframe.

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While the PHSO asked for compensation, Labour argues that almost all the women knew about the changes and it is unlikely that prior communications would have changed their plight in any event. Bell reiterated that the government took the report seriously, but it disagreed with the financial remedy suggested and inference that the decision would undermine the Ombudsman’s authority.

WASPI are now seeking a judicial review of the DWP’s refusal to compensate them and have launched a crowdfund campaign that has raised almost GBP 190,000. If they win the case, the government may have to reconsider their position but they still may not win compensation.

This story continues to highlight the tensions between decisions made by governments and recommendations made by watchdogs and many women are still waiting on justice with regard to pension injustice.