Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden said he would look again at the decision to deny compensation to WASPI women after evidence emerged that was not shown to his predecessor
The Government will reconsider its decision not to award compensation to 1950s-born women affected by changes to the state pension age after new evidence came to light.
Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden said undisclosed evidence from 2007 had emerged, which was not shown to his predecessor Liz Kendall when she decided to deny compensation to WASPI women last year.
But he told MPs the move did not necessarily mean WASPI women would get compensation.
Campaigners say around 3.6million women were not properly informed about plans to change the retirement age from 60 to 65, bringing them in line with men.
An estimated 394,000 women have died since calls for compensation were first made in 2015.
WASPI campaigners are pursuing a judicial review, which was due to be heard in the High Court next month. But the Government has now withdrawn from the process to reconsider the evidence.
In a Commons statement, Mr McFadden said: “We will approach this in a fair and transparent manner.
“Retaking this decision should not be taken as an indication that Government will necessarily decide that it should award financial redress. The work will begin immediately, and we will update the House on the decision as soon as a conclusion is reached.”
No timescale has been given for how long the work will take, raising the prospect of further delays for those affected.
It comes after the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman recommended payouts of between £1,000 and £2,950 each to those affected in March 2024.
In December, Ms Kendall, the previous Work and Pensions Secretary, apologised for a 28-month delay in sending letters to those impacted by the changes.
But she rejected the ombudsman’s recommendation for payouts, arguing that the potential £10.5billion compensation bill was not a fair use of taxpayers’ cash.
Campaigners have argued that those affected were treated unfairly and left unable to plan properly for their retirement.
Angela Madden, Chair of Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI), said: “For 10 years we have been fighting for compensation.
“The government have fought us tooth and nail every step of the way. Today’s announcement is a major step forward. We are now seeking legal advice as to what this means for our judicial review.
“The government now knows it got it wrong and we are pleased they are now trying to do it properly. We hope they also try to do it quickly because every 13 minutes a WASPI woman dies.
“The only correct thing to do is to immediately compensate the 3.6 million WASPI women who have already waited too long for justice.”
Many Labour MPs publicly supported the WASPI campaign in opposition, including Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves.
The party promised to deliver some form of compensation for WASPI women in its 2017 and 2019 manifestos, when Jeremy Corbyn was leader. But it did not repeat the pledge in last year’s election-winning manifesto.