WASPI woman who worked for DWP for 36 years issues damning verdict | Personal Finance | Finance

A WASPI pensioner who worked for the DWP for 36 years has said the department has made a “monumental mess” of the situation.

She said it was a huge shock when she found out she would not get her state pension for another six years.

She told inews: “We all know there is insufficient money to pay each woman what she lost as a result of non notification and even worse, no protected rights for those within 10 years of retirement.

“Those affected deserve fair compensation for the maladministration so the Government needs to get it done.”

She said it caused her generation a lot of stress to have to continue working, which she still feels angry about.

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman has published a report calling for compensation for the women, between £1,000 and £2,950.

The report also urged MPs to take up the issue in Parliament and decide if and what level of compensation to grant to the 3.8 million women who were affected.

A DWP spokesperson said: “We are considering the Ombudsman’s report and will respond in due course, having cooperated fully throughout this investigation.

“The Government has always been committed to supporting all pensioners in a sustainable way that gives them a dignified retirement whilst also being fair to them and taxpayers.

“The state pension is the foundation of income in retirement and will remain so as we deliver a further 8.5 per cent rise in April, increasing the state pension for 12 million pensioners.”

Angela Madden, chair of WASPI, said the campaign group will be renewing its efforts as MPs return to Parliament.

She told Express.co.uk: “We will be writing to Penny Mordaunt, so will some MPs on our behalf and hopefully others, to put pressure on her to make time in the Parliamentary schedule for a debate on this issue.

“We have a lot of MPs who are supportive and want to have their say.”

DWP minister Mel Stride was asked about when Parliament will act on the issue of compensation last week.

He told ITV: “There’ll be no undue delay in us coming forward, but I do want to have sufficient time.

“There are very strong feelings about this on all sides of the argument as to whether compensation should be paid or not.”

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