North Tyneside’s Elected Mayor is set to call on the Government to request a fairer deal for women affected by pension changes.
At a meeting of Full Council last night (November 24), Elected Mayor Norma Redfearn agreed to fight for a fairer deal for women impacted by Government changes to their state pensions.
It follows a motion brought to the meeting on the matter which was raised by the North Tyneside Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI) group, which has over 4,000 members, and was backed by councillors.
Thousands of women born in the 1950s, and many living in North Tyneside, are thought to be adversely affected by the changes to the Pension Act of 1995 and 2011.
The problems have arisen through a combination of the acceleration to the increase in state pension age and the lack of sufficient notice given to women for them to re-plan for their retirement.
Speaking at the meeting, Mayor Redfearn said: “This is something I wholeheartedly support and I am pleased to take it forward and lobby the Government on behalf of these residents.
“The rise in state pension age for those born in the 1950s has been steep and rapid, and hundreds of them have had significant changes imposed on them with little or no personal notification of the changes. This has left women with little time to make suitable alternative arrangements to plan adequately for their old age.
“I have spoken to many people this affects and it’s devastating to hear that many have had their retirement plans shattered.”
The Mayor will now write to the Pensions Minister on behalf of North Tyneside Council requesting fairer transitional state pension arrangements for all women born between April 6, 1950 and April 5, 1960.