WASPI women win unanimous support in Sunderland as meeting hears one 'woman dies every 13 minutes while waiting for pensions compensation'

City councillors have backed a motion linked to the Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI) campaign, which is calling on the Government to produce one-off compensation payments for those affected.

The motion acknowledged state pension age changes have had a “profound effect” on thousands, with many women facing financial hardship, physical and mental health impacts, as well as negative impacts on volunteer numbers and the economy due to “reduced spending power”.

Councillor Sean Laws, Labour and Co-operative member, launched the motion at a full council meeting at City Hall on March 22, 2023.

Key pledges included the city council calling for a “swift resolution to this ongoing injustice before more and more women die waiting for compensation”.

The WASPI campaign focuses on those affected by the state pension age increase for women, which was brought in through several changes to the Pensions Act, eventually raising the state pension age to 66.

Campaigners have said a number of women have been unfairly treated, with many saying they were unaware of the changes.

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman has since ruled there had been “maladministration” by the Department for Work and Pensions around its communication about state pension age.

According to the motion to Sunderland City Council this week, around 18,000 of the women affected by state pension changes are from Sunderland, with a total of 65,000 in the North East.

In his speech on the motion, Cllr Laws paid tribute to the “exceptional women” involved in the council, including councillors and council officers.

He added: “The reason that I mention the women in this chamber is because circumstances could have dictated that any one of those women could have been affected by the changes that the Tyne and Wear WASPI Group, who we have here with us today, have been affected by”.

Several councillors spoke in support of the WASPI campaign at the meeting, with some reflecting on their own experiences with changes to the state pension age.

Councillor David Snowdon said that in his job at a local charity he had “seen the consequences of this policy on a number of women for a number of years”, particularly on single women and divorcees.

Labour councillor Susan Watson said the issue was a “glaring case” of inequality which was “unfair, unjust and needs to be sorted”.

Labour councillor Linda Williams, cabinet member for Vibrant City, identified herself as a WASPI woman and said it was “about time we got this right”.

Councillor Allison Chisnall, Labour member, added “one 1950s woman dies every 13 minutes while they wait for the compensation that they so rightly deserve”.

Cllr Chisnall told the meeting: “WASPI is not against the equalisation of the state pension age, WASPI is not asking for the state pension age to be put back to 60 […] all they’re asking for is fair and fast compensation that they so rightly deserve.

“The Government cannot afford to drag its feet on this issue anymore.

“Please don’t allow another woman, mother, gran or somebody’s aunt to pass away without allowing them to receive the compensation they so rightly deserve”.

‘Immediate compensation’

Councillor Antony Mullen, Conservative Group leader, said there was “consensus in the room” and that Conservative councillors would support the motion.

After being put to the vote, the motion won unanimous support across the council chamber to the applause of several WASPI campaigners in attendance.

Councillors agreed to support the WASPI campaign’s calls for an “immediate one-off compensation payment of between £11,666 and £20,000 to those affected”.

This included higher amounts “going to women who were given the shortest notice of the longest increase in their state pension age”.

Councillor Margaret Crosby, Liberal Democrat member, said it was “essential that the Government takes urgent action to provide financial support for the affected women”.

She added: “The plight of the WASPI women is a matter of social justice that demands our attention”.

Cllr Sean Laws, who proposed the motion, welcomed the support across the council chamber.

Speaking after the meeting he said: “Last night was very emotional, this Government wrote these women off and thought they’d ‘go quietly’ but how wrong they were.

“They have my full support and the support of Sunderland City Council in their fight for justice.

“These women and their fight isn’t going away and we will continue as a council to support them for as long as it takes for them to get justice”.