"Pensioners have claimed "Labour want us 6 feet under" after the government's latest betrayal to compensate women affected by the way changes to the state pension age were communicated.

Pensioners voting in a recent Express.co.uk poll say they are being treated "second class citizens" following the government's "shameful" decision to refuse millions of women compensation.

Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall confirmed yesterday that ministers would deny payments to most of the 3.6 million women born in the 1950s who were not properly informed of the rise in state pension age.

In a letter to campaigners, pensions minister Emma Reynolds said the policy change was "targeted to bring the public finances back under control".

The move, which has been labelled a "despicable decision" has sparked outrage across political divides, came months after Labour stripped up to 10 million pensioners of the winter fuel lifeline.

Reynold's letter has failed to help raise pensioners' Christmas cheer with many taking a stand to fight back against the Government.

Dennis Reed, director of over 60s campaign group Silver Voices, said: "This despicable decision slipped out just before Christmas proves that the scrapping of the winter fuel payment was not a one-off and pensioners are officially second class citizens under the Labour Government.

"Unless we fight back there appears to be no limit to the depths the Government will stoop to to make savings off the backs of poor pensioners."

 

'Labour want us 6-feet under': Pensioners hit out at latest betrayal saying 'they hate us'

I'm not so sure that the Waspi women have that strong a case - in that they are claiming that they weren't properly informed about the changes. It's more likely they are seeking some compo for having the misfortune of being born when they were and facing such a steep rise in pension age over such a short period of time. I'd be pretty angry too and cursing my bad luck if I were one of them, but i don't think I could pretend I didn't know it was about to happen when it did.

That's not the point though. The point is that leading figures in this governement - Starmer, Reeves and Rayner, all took photo opportunities to support the Waspi's when they were in opposition, and have all done U turns now that thay are in government, claiming 'it's not fair' to ask the tax payer to pay compo. Yet they think it fair that the tax payer should be paying huge amounts for housing illegals and asylum seekers plus foreign aid.

Red Okktober wrote:

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I'm not so sure that the Waspi women have that strong a case - in that they are claiming that they weren't properly informed about the changes. It's more likely they are seeking some compo for having the misfortune of being born when they were and facing such a steep rise in pension age over such a short period of time. I'd be pretty angry too and cursing my bad luck if I were one of them, but i don't think I could pretend I didn't know it was about to happen when it did.

That's not the point though. The point is that leading figures in this governement - Starmer, Reeves and Rayner, all took photo opportunities to support the Waspi's when they were in opposition, and have all done U turns now that thay are in government, claiming 'it's not fair' to ask the tax payer to pay compo. Yet they think it fair that the tax payer should be paying huge amounts for housing illegals and asylum seekers plus foreign aid.

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 When Abbott challenged Starmer in the House of Commons yesterday, asking him if he understood the anger over him now refusing to pay out the Waspi women, he said he did understand, but the government couldn't afford it now. If he mentioned the 'Black Hole' for the millionth time, I had tuned out by then....though he did admit 10% would have been misled.

A bit like the winter fuel payment, obviously not every pensioner relied on it, but millions did. Rather than bring in a system where the deserving still received, everyone goes without.

But like you say, the main point is the downright lies they told before they were in power, they have gone back on their word over and over again. The hypocrisy stinks.

Syl wrote:

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Red Okktober wrote:

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I'm not so sure that the Waspi women have that strong a case - in that they are claiming that they weren't properly informed about the changes. It's more likely they are seeking some compo for having the misfortune of being born when they were and facing such a steep rise in pension age over such a short period of time. I'd be pretty angry too and cursing my bad luck if I were one of them, but i don't think I could pretend I didn't know it was about to happen when it did.

That's not the point though. The point is that leading figures in this governement - Starmer, Reeves and Rayner, all took photo opportunities to support the Waspi's when they were in opposition, and have all done U turns now that thay are in government, claiming 'it's not fair' to ask the tax payer to pay compo. Yet they think it fair that the tax payer should be paying huge amounts for housing illegals and asylum seekers plus foreign aid.

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 When Abbott challenged Starmer in the House of Commons yesterday, asking him if he understood the anger over him now refusing to pay out the Waspi women, he said he did understand, but the government couldn't afford it now. If he mentioned the 'Black Hole' for the millionth time, I had tuned out by then....though he did admit 10% would have been misled.

A bit like the winter fuel payment, obviously not every pensioner relied on it, but millions did. Rather than bring in a system where the deserving still received, everyone goes without.

But like you say, the main point is the downright lies they told before they were in power, they have gone back on their word over and over again. The hypocrisy stinks.

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 I'm not sure where Starmer is getting his 90%/10% figures from as he has no way of knowing if the women knew about it or not. He just makes stuff up as he goes along

That black hole nonsense is beyond tedious now

Everything about this governement stinks to high heaven

 

 

-- Edited by Red Okktober on Thursday 19th of December 2024 01:16:35 PM

Red Okktober wrote:

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I'm not so sure that the Waspi women have that strong a case - in that they are claiming that they weren't properly informed about the changes. It's more likely they are seeking some compo for having the misfortune of being born when they were and facing such a steep rise in pension age over such a short period of time. I'd be pretty angry too and cursing my bad luck if I were one of them, but i don't think I could pretend I didn't know it was about to happen when it did.

That's not the point though. The point is that leading figures in this governement - Starmer, Reeves and Rayner, all took photo opportunities to support the Waspi's when they were in opposition, and have all done U turns now that thay are in government, claiming 'it's not fair' to ask the tax payer to pay compo. Yet they think it fair that the tax payer should be paying huge amounts for housing illegals and asylum seekers plus foreign aid.

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 I had no idea it was going to happen.   None at all until it was in the news.  No letter.  No warning.  Luckily, I'm married and have a partner on a good wage.  But some poor women struggled to make ends meet for those six years at a time in their lives when their health and energy was perhaps not so good.    And anyone who says, go get a job, is talking out of their arse.   Try getting a well paid job when you're over 60.  The days are gone when you could just  walk into a place and get a job the same day.   B and Q, that bastion of employing older people, require an 8 page psychological  online test before you even get an interview.  When I was made redundant at 55, I had to go sign on.  I couldn't even get an interview never mind a job.   I asked the woman at the DSS if it was my age, and she said, "off the record?  Yes."  So I fucked off the dole and the job centre and went self employed.  It was the best thing I ever did.  But I'm lucky, because my husband was working and I'm the type of person who can focus my energy on creativity and my health is OK.  But when you consider that £50K has been lost to these women, it does rankle.  

The changes should have been eased in.  Not just cut off with no warning.

Digger wrote:

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Red Okktober wrote:

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I'm not so sure that the Waspi women have that strong a case - in that they are claiming that they weren't properly informed about the changes. It's more likely they are seeking some compo for having the misfortune of being born when they were and facing such a steep rise in pension age over such a short period of time. I'd be pretty angry too and cursing my bad luck if I were one of them, but i don't think I could pretend I didn't know it was about to happen when it did.

That's not the point though. The point is that leading figures in this governement - Starmer, Reeves and Rayner, all took photo opportunities to support the Waspi's when they were in opposition, and have all done U turns now that thay are in government, claiming 'it's not fair' to ask the tax payer to pay compo. Yet they think it fair that the tax payer should be paying huge amounts for housing illegals and asylum seekers plus foreign aid.

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 I had no idea it was going to happen.   None at all until it was in the news.  No letter.  No warning.  Luckily, I'm married and have a partner on a good wage.  But some poor women struggled to make ends meet for those six years at a time in their lives when their health and energy was perhaps not so good.    And anyone who says, go get a job, is talking out of their arse.   Try getting a well paid job when you're over 60.  The days are gone when you could just  walk into a place and get a job the same day.   B and Q, that bastion of employing older people, require an 8 page psychological  online test before you even get an interview.  When I was made redundant at 55, I had to go sign on.  I couldn't even get an interview never mind a job.   I asked the woman at the DSS if it was my age, and she said, "off the record?  Yes."  So I fucked off the dole and the job centre and went self employed.  It was the best thing I ever did.  But I'm lucky, because my husband was working and I'm the type of person who can focus my energy on creativity and my health is OK.  But when you consider that £50K has been lost to these women, it does rankle.  

The changes should have been eased in.  Not just cut off with no warning.

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 AFAIK it was phasd in, albeit it at a fairly brisk rate.

The government announced in 1995 that the women's pension age would be going up, and phased in during a 10 year period of 2010-2020. I presume that meant going up 6 months every year in real time. So in 2011 the age would be 60 and 6 months, in 2012 it would be 61, and so on. By announcing it in 1995, they gave 15 years notice, which is a long time but unfortunately also long enough for many to have forgotten about it. 1995 was also pre-internet, so the information wouldn't have reached as many as it would do today

Where I think some compensation is due, is that in 2010 just as the phasing in was about to start, the government moved the goalposts and changed the phasing in period to 2010-2018, so the age went up at a quicker rate than first announced. So any woman planning her retirement on the original figures would have had to revise her plans through no fault of her own. That is the bit that I think is unfair.

An independant review in March said that women affected should recieve between (roughly) £1,000 and £3,000 in compensation, which I think is a fair amount for the moving of the goalposts.

Good luck to the Waspi's though if they get more.

Maddog wrote:

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Looks like Deutschland is a little broken tonight too.

Horrific..😳😕

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 The world's gone mad

Digger wrote:

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Maddog wrote:

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Looks like Deutschland is a little broken tonight too.

Horrific..😳😕

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 That car drove through the crowds at around 70 or 80 an hour by the looks of it.  Footage of it on X.

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 I saw the video. If the death toll stays at 11 they will be lucky. 

 

Wonder how many others are paralyzed for life? 

It's getting beyond a joke now. Bloody Muslim causing more deaths and chaos!