Waspi campaigners have raised over £132,000 in their fight to challenge Labour’s refusal to compensate women affected by state pension age changes, new figures show.
The Women Against State Pension Inequality (Waspi) campaign revealed yesterday it had received 7,607 pledges, with the total standing at £132,111.
The group is seeking funds to launch a judicial review against the Government’s decision not to award compensation to women born in the 1950s. These women were affected when the state pension age rose from 60 to 65.
“After years of denial and evasion, the Government has accepted that 1950s-born women are victims of maladministration because it delayed notifying us of our state pension ages, but it now says none of us suffered any injustice,” the campaign stated on social media.
“We believe this is not only an outrage but legally wrong.” Waspi is currently aiming to raise £180,000 to fund its legal challenge.
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The Waspi campaign have so far raised £130k as part of their effort to launch a judicial review
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The campaign explained on their crowdfunding page that while no case is guaranteed success, a favourable court ruling would force Government action.
“If the court agrees with us and our legal team that the Government’s decision is legally flawed, the Government would need to reconsider and make a new, lawful decision,” they stated.
A victory would not automatically secure compensation but would undermine the Government’s justification for refusing it.
“If we win, the Government would have to withdraw its decision to reject the Ombudsman’s finding on injustice and its decision not to compensate 1950s born women,” the group explained.
The Government would then “need to go away and think again and make a new, lawful decision” about both the injustice and potential remedies.
The Parliamentary Ombudsman’s report found that the Department for Work and Pensions’ (DWP) communication of pension age changes between 1995 and 2004 met required standards. However, it identified two instances of maladministration.
Firstly, the DWP failed to adequately consider the need for targeted, individually tailored information in 2005. Secondly, the department did not act promptly on a November 2006 proposal to write directly to affected women about the changes.
This resulted in a 28-month delay in beginning the direct mailing exercise. Based on these findings, the ombudsman recommended the Government provide a remedy.
Specifically, it suggested compensation at level four, which amounts to between £1,000 and £2,950 for each woman affected.
Despite the ombudsman’s findings, the government confirmed in December it would not offer compensation to the affected women.
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Women in the 1950s are raising money to take the Government to court
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“We should not need to take legal action to get justice, but we will if we have to,” Waspi stated on their social media account.
The judicial review represents what campaigners see as their last recourse after years of advocacy.
If successful, it would force the Government to reconsider its position on both the injustice suffered and potential compensation.
The campaign continues to gather support as it approaches its £180,000 target needed to proceed with the legal challenge.
