Labour issue NEW WASPI compensation update after ignoring them in Budget

The new Labour Party government has issued a key WASPI update - after failing to mention the women affected during the Autumn Budget. Labour Party MP Darren Jones says the issue would be revisited after it failed to feature in Rachel Reeves’s Budget.

A damning Parliament and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO) report released in March accused the Department for Work and Pensions ( DWP ) of “maladministration” and recommended compensation payouts of up to £2,950.

In a BBC Breakfast interview, Mr Jones said that the Ombudsman report did not finalise the structure, cost or eligibility for compensation. He added: “That has still not been concluded. I appreciate it’s been a couple of months since we’ve been in government, but DWP is having to work with stakeholders, look at the Ombudsman report and consider that, and so we’ll have to come back to that at future fiscal events.”

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Angela Madden, chair of Waspi, said: “The Government was right to announce compensation for victims of the infected blood and Post Office scandals in the Budget. However, Waspi women are also right to question why they are still awaiting justice after nine long years of campaigning.

“We can see that ministers are taking this report seriously and look forward to seeing what proposals they bring before MPs as quickly as possible.” Christine Smith, Waspi’s Wear and Tees campaign coordinator, said that 65,000 North East women were affected and the current Government was not acting quickly enough.

She said: “A lot of women had already retired to care for their elderly parents or grandchildren. It’s devastating for the whole family. It affects men as well, they’re having to work longer. When women leave, it’s harder to get back into the workplace.

“Up here it’s been particularly devastating. Women have lost their homes, got themselves into debt, can’t get a job. The first pension act was in 1995. If the Government had told us then, we could have planned ahead. We have never said we disagree with equalisation.

“It makes me pretty angry on account that [Labour] already had a [compensation] plan in place from 2019. I can’t understand why this administration is dithering about. The Labour party promised Waspi women they would see justice. Get on with it.”