Anyone who thinks older women will give up, is wrong

SHORTLY before Christmas the Government issued its response to the long-awaited report by the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman on the handling of communications over changes to the state pension age.

- Angela Madden

It was eagerly awaited by our group Waspi - Women Against State Pension Inequality. An estimated 3.6 million of us born in the Fifties were not properly informed of the rise in retirement age from 60 to 65 - to bring women into line with men - and had our plans and financial security thrown into chaos.

Sadly but unsurprisingly the PHSO found the Department of Work and Pensions had not adequately communicated these changes robbing millions of Waspi women of the opportunity to properly plan for their retirements. This, it said, was "maladministration" and the ombudsman recommended compensation and an apology for everyone affected.

Yet in response to the report, in the House of Commons, the Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall roundly rejected any kind of financial payout or compensation.

UNUSUALLY, the ombudsman laid his report before Parliament as he knew in advance that the DWP had rejected his judgement.