Oral Answers to Questions

John McDonnell Excerpts

Monday 31st October 2022 Commons Chamber

[John McDonnell (Hayes and Harlington) (Lab)]

9. If he will take steps to provide additional support during winter 2022-23 to women affected by the rise in state pension age.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions (Laura Trott)]

A wide range of support is available to those of state pension age and for those on low income who are entitled to pensioner benefits.

[John McDonnell]

Members across the House will have appreciated the sense of grievance and injustice from women born in the 1950s who were not given proper notice of the rise in the state pension age. The ombudsman has recognised this as maladministration, the right hon. Member for Uxbridge and South Ruislip (Boris Johnson), when he was the Prime Minister and leading the campaign in the 2019 general election, said he would address this matter. Since then, more of those women are now living in poverty and 200,000 of them have died, yet not a single Minister has met them since 2016. Is the Minister willing to meet a delegation from the WASPI campaign to talk about their plight and find a way forward?

[Laura Trott]

I thank the right hon. Gentleman for his question and understand where he is coming from, but there is an ongoing investigation so it would be inappropriate for me to meet people at this stage.