Agenda item

State Pension Age Equalisation

It was moved by Councillor Julie Dore, seconded by Councillor Nasima Akther, that this Council:-

(a)       recalls that:-

(i)         the State Pension Age (SPA), created in the 1995 Pensions Act, set out incremental women’s SPA rises from 60 to 65 to equalise with men’s SPA; and

(ii)        this was accelerated by the 2011 Pensions Act, so that women’s SPA would increase to 65 by 2018;

(b)       welcomes the equalisation of the State Pension Age but is concerned that the acceleration of that equalisation, implemented by the Coalition Government and overseen by former Liberal Democrat Pensions Minister, the Rt. Hon. Steve Webb, discriminates against women born in the early 1950s, leaving them with inadequate time to make alternative arrangements and adversely affecting their retirement plans;

(c)        notes Steve Webb’s admission to the Institute for Government in December that he made a “bad decision” on raising the State Pension Age; and

(d)       calls on the current Minister of State for Pensions to immediately introduce transitional arrangements to provide protection for women affected by equalisation of the State Pension Age

Whereupon, it was moved by Councillor Sue Alston, seconded by Councillor Penny Baker, as an amendment, that the Motion now submitted be amended by the deletion of paragraphs (b) to (d) and the addition of new paragraphs (b) to (d) as follows:-

(b)        welcomes the equalisation of the State Pension Age but is concerned that, due to the failure of previous Governments to properly communicate the changes to the State Pension Age for women born in the 1950's, many women only discovered the changes in 2009, or when they were contacted about the further, necessary, changes that were made in 2011, leaving them inadequate time to make alternative arrangements and adversely affecting their plans for retirement;

(c)         notes that, whilst in Government, Liberal Democrats worked hard to alleviate the impact of the equalisation by introducing £2bn worth of changes that meant for most women no more than 12 months was added to their State Pension Age (SPA), with an absolute maximum of 18 months, from the position they inherited from the previous Government; and

(d)      believes that more can be done to help those women affected and therefore calls on the current Minister of State for Pensions to immediately introduce transitional arrangements to provide protection for women affected by equalisation of the State Pension Age.    

On being put to the vote, the amendment was negatived.

(Note: Councillors Pauline Andrews, Jack Clarkson, Keith Davis and John Booker voted for Paragraphs (b) and (d) and abstained on Paragraph (c) of the amendment and asked for this to be recorded.)

The original Motion was then put to the vote and carried, as follows:-