The Labour Government has been accused of “betrayal” after it announced it will not give Waspi women compensation.
Labour Work and Pension Secretary Liz Kendall announced that women born in the 1950s – who campaigners say were not properly informed of the rise to the state pension age – will not be given any sort of financial payout.
The SNP said the move was “a devastating betrayal”. The Lib Dems said it was “a day of shame” while the Greens said Labour should “hang their heads in shame”.
A parliamentary ombudsman recommended payouts of between £1,000 and £2,950 to those affected nine months ago. The Women Against State Pension Inequality (Waspi) campaign had said there should be payments of at least £10,000 each.
Kendall told the Commons: “The Government does not believe paying a flat rate to all women at a cost of up to £10.5 billion would be fair or proportionate to taxpayers.”
SNP DWP Spokesperson Kirsty Blackman said: “This Labour Government announcement is a devastating betrayal of the millions of WASPI women who have spent years campaigning for justice.
“Having been let down for so many years by successive Tory Governments there was a sense that Labour might finally live up to their promise of ‘Change’, but instead Labour has confirmed that they will betray those women and pull yet another shady Westminster trick.
“For years Labour politicians, including Anas Sarwar, backed the WASPI campaign and promised to help deliver justice – now in just their first year in power, they turned their back on millions of affected women.
“This scandal has dragged on for too long and it’s long past time for Westminster to do the right thing, apologise for the years of delay and deliver fair and fast compensation to all those women affected. The SNP will continue to fight and campaign for the WASPI women to receive the justice they deserve and it’s high time Labour MPs from Scotland showed some backbone and did the same.”
Liberal Democrat Scottish affairs spokesperson Christine Jardine said: “Today is a day of shame for the government. The new government has turned its back on millions of pension-age women who were wronged through no fault of their own, ignoring the independent Ombudsman’s recommendations, and that is frankly disgraceful.”
She added: “Today’s heartless decision cannot be allowed to stand and we will be pressing ministers to give those affected the fair treatment they deserve.”
Scottish Greens social justice spokesperson Maggie Chapman said: “Labour must hang their heads in shame! This is a total betrayal of working-class women across Britain.
“I am devastated for the women affected by this news and I am disgusted that Labour think they can get away with this. The Scottish Greens will persist in the fight to ensure the WASPI women receive full, fair and fast compensation.
“The recommendation was clear: WASPI women deserve their pensions and compensation. For Labour to reject the report is shameful. I urge the Work and Pensions secretary to reconsider her betrayal of workers.”
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