22,730 women affected in West Northamptonshire by Pension Inequality

This Thursday, The Liberal Democrats at West Northants Council will be calling for council and councillors of all political persuasions to support a motion in support of the Woman Against State Pension Inequality (known as WASPI).

In the 1995 Pensions Act, the then Conservative Government increased State Pension age for women from 60 to 65, which subsequently increased to 66 in the 2011 Pensions Act. The change was not properly communicated to 3.8m women born in the 1950s until 2012, giving some only one year’s notice of a six-year increase in their anticipated retirement age. An estimated 22,730 of the affected women are in the West Northamptonshire Council Area.

“In March, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) ruled that the Government has a responsibility to address the injustices faced by these women. It also highlighted failures in the communication of the government and policy makers alike, in ensuring that people were not only aware of the changes but understood exactly what it meant for them” says Cllr Jonathan Harris, Deputy Liberal Democrat Leader at the Council. “This injustice needs correcting as soon as possible” he continues.

Cllr Rosie Humphreys, Liberal Democrat ward member for Braunston & Crick adds “Apart from the injustice for individuals, it is entirely likely that this issue has added to the burden of costs for local authorities with women potentially having to seek support which they may not have needed. They may have been able to offer caring help to older relatives and perhaps childcare for their grandchildren. Instead, they have had to continue to work, creating more duty of care pressures for councils”.

The motion asks that the leader of the council writes local Members of Parliament to encourage them to raise the issue for debate as well as other Senior Members of Government to ensure that the issue is resolved sooner rather than later.

It is estimated that over 290,000 WASPI women have died since 2015, and that the treasury has saved over £4 billion because of these changes.

The West Northamptonshire Council meeting takes place on Thursday 26th September at 5pm in The Guildhall, Northampton.