Transitional State Pension Arrangements for Women
Debate between Peter Grant and Ben Howlett(8 years, 9 months ago)
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Ben Howlett
I thank the hon. Gentleman for his intervention. He makes his point in his own way, but any changes in welfare come with a cost implication, as he well knows.
Ben Howlett
No, I will make some progress. As I said, I must note the concerns I have heard from constituents who have come to my surgeries. The Department for Work and Pensions continues to deny that women who were affected were not contacted, but a number of constituents have contacted me to say that they did not receive adequate notification. It was also concerning to hear that the Department failed to send out a significant number of state pension estimates, citing, in part, reasons of data protection.
Apart from for actuaries and accountants, pensions are confusing; indeed, I am no expert myself. Not only do the Government need to investigate their contact with women about the changes, and the methods used, but there is a wider issue about financial education and I am pleased that the Money Advice Service is working on a new strategy for the financial education of children.