Minister denies betraying Waspi women over pension pay-out

A minister has denied betraying so-called Waspi women affected by the way changes to the state pension age were communicated.

Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden said a targeted compensation programme would “not be practical”, with a wider flat-rate scheme costing up to £10.3 billion.

His decision has sparked fury among campaigners including the group Women Against State Pension Inequality (Waspi).

Its chairwoman Angela Madden accused the Government of treating 1950s-born women with “utter contempt”, branding the decision a “disgraceful political choice”.

Mr McFadden visited Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire on Friday, where he was asked if he had betrayed the women.

He told the Press Association: “As I said in the House of Commons yesterday, I thought it was right to re-examine and retake the decision with regard to a compensation scheme, so I looked at all the evidence, all the surveys, and I retook the decision and set out the reasons for that.”

Pensions Minister Torsten Bell, who sat on the front benches during Thursday’s statement, has faced criticism after he appeared to be yawning.

Mr McFadden refused to be drawn when asked if Mr Bell had shown contempt for the women by yawning.

He said: “We set out in the House of Commons yesterday the process we’ve gone through.

“I told the House of Commons in November that I wanted to retake this decision.

“I think that was the right and fair thing to do, and I reported to Parliament yesterday on the conclusions of that process.”

Labour’s previous policy not to offer redress was reviewed after the rediscovery of a 2007 Department for Work and Pensions evaluation, which at the time led to officials stopping sending automatic pension forecast letters out.

Reacting to Thursday’s decision, chairwoman Ms Madden said Waspi is taking legal advice and “all options remain on the table”.

“We stand ready to pursue every avenue in Parliament and in the courts to secure the justice that has been so shamefully denied,” she added.

The Secretary of State faced a backlash in the Commons from his own backbenchers, many of them describing the news as “disappointing”.

Scotland’s First Minister branded the decision not to set up a compensation scheme as “deeply regrettable”, and described it as “another betrayal”.