WASPI campaigners slam DWP as ‘they aren’t going to listen to anybody’ | Personal Finance | Finance

WASPI campaigners (Women Against State Pension Inequality) have voiced their frustration at the Government disregarding their case arguing that it should be for Parliament to decide on the issue.

A report from the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman previously recommended compensation for the 1950s-born WASPI generation of women and called for Parliament to take up the issue, only for the Government to come out and say at the end of last year that there would be no compensation.

Pensions minister Torsten Bell told a committee of MPs last week that it was “unusual but not unprecedented” for the Government to disregard an Ombudsman’s ruling, after it ignored the watchdog’s recommendation that there should be compensation ranging from £1,000 to £2,950 for the women.

WASPI campaign chair Angela Madden said: “The DWP from the very beginning of this whole process has insisted that they have done the right thing. They aren’t going to listen to anybody outside of themselves and they never were.

“This is why the Ombudsman put the report before Parliament and not before the DWP or the Government. He said it should go before Parliament.

“I still think Parliament should have a vote, but of course the Government aren’t allowing that to happen, they’re making all the decisions.”

The WASPI (Women Against State Pension Inequality) campaign represents the generation of women who were affected when their state pension age increased from 60 to 65 and then 66, a change they claim they were not properly told about by the DWP.

The PHSO found in its previous report that the was ‘maladministration’ on the part of the DWP, as they should have sent out a letter sooner to advise the women of the change.

But the Labour Government said in December 2024 that there would be no compensation, arguing that most women knew of the change and that sending out the letters sooner would have made little difference.

The WASPI campaign has applied for there to be a judicial review of the Government’s decision – and the high court has now accepted the application.

But Ms Madden pointed out that even a court victory would not guarantee payouts. She said: “It doesn’t matter even if we win the case, the Government probably still won’t want to pay what they should or what has been recommended.

“What we are hoping is that more and more MPs will come across to the side of what is right to be done, rather than voting with the Government.”

She pointed to the case of the eligibility for the Winter Fuel Payment, where pressures from individual MPs and advocacy groups have forced the Government to change their position.

Labour tightened the eligibility criteria for last year’s payment, but has now expanded it again so most state pensioners will qualify, although those with an income above £35,000 will have to pay it back.

Many individual MPs support the WASPI campaign, including Labour politicians, while several political parties also support compensation, including the Liberal Democrats and the SNP.

A DWP spokesperson said previously when asked for comment on the judicial review: “We do not comment on live litigation. We accept the Ombudsman’s finding of maladministration and have apologised for there being a 28-month delay in writing to 1950s-born women.

“However, we do not agree with the Ombudsman’s approach to injustice or remedy and that is why we have decided not to pay compensation.”