Barrow WASPI women brave rain to join pensions 'justice' rally

This afternoon 1950s-born women from right across the UK came together at Parliament Square to draw attention to their cause.

The women have been affected by the state pension age changes, which saw their retirement age rise from 60 to 66.

Hundreds of women congregated at the Millicent Garret Fawcett statue, a memorial to commemorate the woman who campaigner for women's suffrage by legal change, to make their opinions known on International Women's Day.

Many carried purple umbrellas, a colour which has come to be associated with the women's rights movement.

Others came with signs with slogans commonly used by 1950s-born women, including: "Fair and fast compensation", "We paid in, you pay out", and "We want our pensions now".

Among those present were the Barrow and Furness WASPI group who made the near 300-mile trek to join fellow protesters in Westminster.  

Six women from the Barrow group travelled by train this morning to gather outside Westminster after Prime Minister’s questions.

WASPI women hope that this will once again bring public attention to what they see as ill-treatment at the hands of the Department for Work & Pensions.

READ MORE: Barrow WASPI women take fight to Westminster over compensation delays

Barrow WASPI women at Westminster with MP Simon Fell (Image: Submitted)

The Barrow WASPI women said there was an ‘excellent turnout’ at the protest despite adverse weather conditions.

The campaign group says the treasury has saved itself over £3billion by not offering compensation to all the women born in the 1950s who were hurt by the state pension age increase.

In 2021, the Parliamentary & Health Service Ombudsman ruled that the Department for Work and Pensions was guilty of maladministration in failing to give proper notice to 3.8 million women born in the 1950s whose State Pension Age was subjected to a series of changes.

Since then the Ombudsman has been investigating whether this maladministration resulted in injustice - and if so, how the women involved should be compensated.

In an investigation into the affair, the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) has now moved to the third stage of its review into how DWP communicated these changes to women. The result of this report is set to be announced early in 2024.