A bill to require the Government to set out a timetable for providing WASPI compensation is to have its second reading in Parliament.
MPs will consider the proposed bill for a second time today (April 19), which sets out to “require the Secretary of State to publish proposals for a compensation scheme for women born between 6th April 1950 and 5th April 1960 inclusive who have been affected by increases in the state pension age; and for connected purposes”.
The latest action to force the Government to act comes after MP Richard Thomson told Express.co.uk that ministers need to provide compensation “as soon as possible”.
The proposed legislation was first presented by SNP MP Alan Brown and has cross-party support including MPs from the Consevatives, Labour and the Liberal Democrats.
The motion setting out the bill states: “The purpose of this bill is to bring forward parliamentary intervention to stop those affected women having to wait any longer.
“Fair and fast compensation is the simple scheme that the WASPI women are looking for, using, as a minimum, Level 5 of the ombudsman scale—realistically, however, Level 6 of the PHSO [Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman] bandings is the most appropriate—and this bill could deliver a simple framework.”
These levels refer to the PHSO’s bandings for financial remedy, with Level 5 involving compensation payouts of between £3,000 and £9,950, while Level 6 is the highest banding, with payouts of £10,000 or more.
The motion states: “We are talking about a practical resolution, one that does not result in astronomical sums per person.
“It is not asking for a reversal of pension age to 60, and it is not a full restitution of pensions for those affected by the maladministration—no matter how nice an outcome that would be.
instead of letting the Tories move his political dial and political compass, find a moral backbone and make a commitment that if this fag-end Tory Government will not deliver some form of compensation, a future Labour Government will. Having said that, given that the current Labour shadow Work and Pensions Secretary has never uttered
the words “WASPI” or “1950s women” in Parliament, and neither has Labour’s Women and Equalities spokesperson, I do not see much pressure being put on the Labour leader from within his shadow Cabinet. This is a shocking dereliction of duty from what is supposed to be the main Opposition party at Westminster.
“The WASPI women understand there is no blank cheque from the Treasury; they are practical and they want to get on. That said, we cannot lose sight of the fact that the UK Government have saved £200 billion from the decision to equalise the state pension age at 66.”
Mr Brown also urged Labour leader Kier Starmer, who could be Prime Minister if his party wins the General Election, to take the initiative and commit to action on the issue.
The motion for the bill urges Mr Starmer: “Instead of letting the Tories move his political dial and political compass, find a moral backbone and make a commitment that if this fag-end Tory Government will not deliver some form of compensation, a future Labour Government will.
“Having said that, given that the current Labour shadow Work and Pensions Secretary has never uttered the words “WASPI” or “1950s women” in Parliament, and neither has Labour’s Women and Equalities spokesperson, I do not see much pressure being put on the Labour leader from within his shadow Cabinet.
“This is a shocking dereliction of duty from what is supposed to be the main Opposition party at Westminster.”
The motion also took aim at the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman for “dragging its feet” on the matter.
Mr Brown said: “It is hard to believe that in the almost three years since the maladministration assessment, a solution is still to be recommended by the Ombudsman.
“It is a scandal in itself that the WASPI women had to go to court to confirm the flaws in the second Ombudsman report.”
The most recent PHSO report recommended payouts of between £1,000 and £2,950 for the WASPI women, and urged Parliament to take action on the issue.
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