Women Against State Pension Injustice said it needed the government to act without delay to schedule a debate that would secure the compensation and apology that 3.6 million women have been fighting for since 2016.
WASPI’s petition to Introduce a compensation scheme for WASPI women—Petitions hit the 100,000 signature milestone at the weekend, in what campaigners called a “fantastic achievement.”
The group has been campaigning for fair payments to women caught out by the increase in the state pension between 2010 and 2018.
WASPI said the move, which raised the age at which women could claim from 60 to 65, had 3.6 million women.
Earlier, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman said the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) was guilty of “maladministration” and that the women affected should receive payouts of between £1,000 and £2,950.
The bill could be as much as £10.5bn, although WASPI said since the increase, around 300,000 women had died before being able to claim any compensation.
WASPI’s petition called for: “The Government to fairly compensate WASPI women affected by the increases to their State Pension age and the associated failings in DWP communications.”
This means that the government will now have to consider holding a debate on the issues raised in the petition.
On Facebook the group posted: “Fantastic achievement and well done all who signed. It’s not too late, you can add your support to the petition here.”
One woman commented: “Well done to all of us, just shows what we can achieve when we all pull together. We will all benefit sooner or later!”
Another added “let’s show this government we will fight for justice” while a third wrote “Many congratulations. Fingers crossed for an urgent and successful conclusion to this long long fight. Many, many thanks to all those who have steadfastly campaigned to get to this point”.
