Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what measures they will introduce to ensure that women who have multiple jobs, none of which are eligible for National Insurance credits, do not lose out on future state pension rights.

The design of the new State Pension allows for considerable gaps, up to 15 years over a 50 year working life (based on an State Pension age of 66), without affecting a person’s ability to build up sufficient qualifying years to gain the full entitlement. Women in particular are likely to benefit from this arrangement. In addition those with multiple low-paid jobs are likely to already have some paid or credited contributions and there is little evidence that people are engaged in this type of work pattern for significant periods in their working life so many of those affected will have the opportunity to build up sufficient qualifying years in the future. There is also the option to pay voluntary National Insurance contributions for any week in which someone does not have paid or credited contributions. We have no plans to alter or extend these arrangements.