Holly Lynch – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Women and Equalities

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Holly Lynch on 2015-11-23.

To ask the Minister for Women and Equalities, what discussions she has had with her ministerial colleagues on the effect of the increase in the state pension age on women.

Mr Shailesh Vara

Ministers regularly discuss matters of policy that span their responsibilities.

Reasonable mitigation for those worst affected by changes in State Pension age was introduced in 2011. A concession was made prior to the passing of the 2011 Act which reduced the delay that anyone would experience in claiming their State Pension, relative to the previous timetable, to 18 months. This concession was worth £1.1 billion in total.

This Government is committed to better outcomes for pensioners. However, the several billions of pounds that it would cost to make further policy changes in this area, that prolong the gender inequality in State Pension provision, cannot be justified.