News story

8th May 2002

Liberal Democrats Demand Pensions Justice for Women

Today, Liberal Democrat Leader Charles Kennedy MP, Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary Steve Webb MP and Claire Rayner will launch a major new campaign to tackle the injustice that female pensioners suffer.

They will highlight the facts that:

· among today’s pensioners, poverty rates are highest among women; almost three quarters of pensioners on Income Support are women, and elderly widows are especially poor;

· among women in their 40s and 50s, many are set to receive poor state pensions because they paid National Insurance at the special rate for married women; some have been promised pensions as low as 7p per week;

· women in their 20s and 30s, could face similar patterns of poverty in old age as their mothers and grandmothers; Government plans to increase the role of private provision and cut back on universal state pensions could leave many women vulnerable;

In response, the campaign calls for:

· A substantial increase in the basic state pension, particularly for older pensioners; this is the only way to guarantee that help gets through to the poorest pensioners, many of whom do not claim the Government’s complex means-tested benefits;

· For the Government to write to all women in their 40s and 50s who have ever paid the married woman’s “stamp” to warn them that their pension rights may be in jeopardy;

· A major Government inquiry into the future pension prospects of today’s working women, with a promise of action to guarantee that the next generation of women pensioners do not miss out.

Steve Webb will announce:

· The establishment of a nationwide grass roots network of women who will kick-start the campaign for women’s justice.

Charles Kennedy will say:

“Pensioners are still treated by this Government as second class citizens. They have not forgotten the 75p insult. But many pensioners who happen to be women are treated differently – as third class citizens.

“If the 75p was an insult, then what of the women who acted on Government advice and now find themselves with as little as 7 pence a week pension?

“Liberal Democrats believe that everyone has the right to expect dignity and security in old age.

“This can only be achieved by firstly delivering a decent state pension, with particular help for older pensioners, and secondly by ensuring that all people have a second pension of their own.”

Steve Webb will say:

“The pattern for too many women is poorly paid work followed by poorly paid retirement. Many women are horrified when they discover how little pension they are entitled to.

“Once again the Government has promised much, but delivered little. The Labour Party’s vision for older people is forcing more than half of Britain’s pensioners into an undignified future of mass-means testing.

“Our three point plan would help to relieve poverty among today’s pensioners and would help to ensure that future generations of women pensioners do not have to live in poverty in old age.”

ENDS