Women’s State Pension Age Communication: PHSO Report

Peter Swallow Excerpts

Tuesday 17th December 2024 Commons Chamber

[Liz Kendall]

The hon. Lady raises a valid point about the state pension itself and the difficulties for women who have taken time out to look after children. We took that seriously when we were last in government, and we still do now, because we want to ensure that there is proper equality for those women. The report and this decision are not about the acceleration in the increase to the state pension age, which was at the heart of why so many women felt angry about what happened. We will ensure that we give proper notice so that people can plan for their retirement, we will support women through the pension triple lock and all the investment that we are putting into the NHS, and we will ensure that equality for women is at the heart of our proposals for pensions.

[Peter Swallow (Bracknell) (Lab)]

WASPI women in my constituency will have listened to the statement with some difficulty, as I know my right hon. Friend has accepted, but they will also have heard her offer a heartfelt from the Dispatch Box, which is quite right. Will she assure them that the maladministration that underlined this case will never happen again, and that this injustice will not be repeated by this or any other Government?

[Liz Kendall]

I thank my hon. Friend for his question. It is most important, first, that in future people have proper notice of any changes to the state pension age so that they can properly plan for their retirement, which is not what happened in 2011 under the previous Government; secondly, that we ensure that people get effective, timely and personalised information about their state pension and, I would argue, about their second pensions; and thirdly, that we reach people in many different ways, not just by sending letters, precisely because we know that the great majority of people who get unsolicited letters do not remember getting them or reading some or any of them. That is why we must ensure that our communication strategy is much more personalised, timely and effective.

Oral Answers to Questions

Peter Swallow Excerpts

Monday 16th December 2024 Commons Chamber

[Sir Stephen Timms]

I welcome the NAO report, which I asked for last May, when I was Chair of the Work and Pensions Committee. We are determined to address the problem of carer’s allowance overpayments. The cliff edge could be dealt with through the introduction of a taper instead of the current arrangements, as the Chancellor mentioned in her Budget speech in the autumn. If we do that, it will not happen quickly, because it will be quite a major project, but it is something that we are looking at closely.

[Peter Swallow (Bracknell) (Lab)]

T8. My constituent Gary has seen his real-terms income fall because the pension he built up before 1997 in a defined-benefit scheme is not subject to indexation, even though 80% of defined-benefit schemes are in surplus. Will my right hon. Friend ask the Pensions Regulator to look at this issue?

[Emma Reynolds]

I thank my hon. Friend for representing the concerns of his constituent. The Department is working closely with the Pensions Regulator. We are looking to gather information on the number of schemes that provide discretionary increases on pre-1997 benefits and those that do not. At the moment, the trustees of those schemes have discretion over the decision to index those benefits.