The Department for Work and Pensions has produced statistics to frighten the public into believing that compensating 3.8 million women born in the 1950s who lost out through the rise in the pension age from 60 to 66 will cost more than double the real price.
A new DWP research report issued a day after judicial review hearing on June 5 and 6 and given widespread coverage in mainstream media put the cost at an eye watering £188 billion and £212 billion instead of a previous figure of £77.2 billion. The directly comparable figure hidden in a footnote is £91.1 billion at today’s prices.
The full story including how the DWP really knows that 50s women are badly off is in BylineTimes here. https://bylinetimes.com/2019/06/20/project-fear-how-the-dwp-is-trying-to-mislead-the-public-over-the-backto60-pension-costs/
Westminster Confidential 
Reblogged this on Fear and Loathing in Great Britain.
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Just brilliant reporting, thank you 🌟
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Brilliant report again David. Thank you
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It doesn’t matter how much it will cost the DWP it is our money that we have paid in and was told we would get a pension at the age of 60 I have worked solid since the age of 15 and paid my fair share of tax and nat ins. And it is totally unfair to have the goal posts moved the way they were and with not enough notice to make up the amount we are losing have already Lost. I for one do not have a private pension pot worth 100.000 pound nor 500.000. the ONE thing the DWP Seems to have forgotten we have worked long and hard and contributed to the state pension they have robbed us out of thus far. You would not deposit money in a bank and not expect to get any of it back they would get done for fraud so why is the DWP getting away with stealing our pensions. I so hope we win as it is OUR money we paid in that is being taken from us. Many thanks back to 60 and the Legal team you are doing a brilliant Job that is very much appreciated by all us 50s Ladies.
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Just for a change the Dwp etc are lying??? There’s a surprise!! Surely they can’t manipulate things again
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They have stolen our Pension and lives ! Absolutely disgraceful .yet they throw money at anyone who arrives in this country (our money !) Who have never paid one penny in or ever will ! . shameful .
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Find this disgusting!! Not only do they rob us of our dues, they then manipulate the figures to suit themselves how they sleep at night is beyond me
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I just knew they were Bull💩ing US … absolutely loath these people … they sicken me to the root of my soul … !!!
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Another point for me personally in this is when I married my husband who is 11 years older than me I only expected him to be retired 5 years before me he has now been retired 10 years and I’ve still got over 2 years to work, I also have a mother in her 90s and it would have been good to have some quality time with her instead of juggling work (I need to work to earn money ) with looking after her.
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At the least, the very very least, the DWP could let us off any further national insurance contributions. I pay class 2 and class 4 as I’m self-employed – the latter being as far as I can see no more than a tax on being self-employed since it brings no other benefits.
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Thank you David for once again uncovering the truth.
It is a nasty dirty trick the DWP have used to once again try and discredit us 2950 Wonen.
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As usual – David’s investigative journalism is right on point!
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There is still no mention of where the £271 billion has gone taken from women in NI contributions. Shameful of the DWP and government.
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They are well aware of what they are doing to us and yet they sleep soundly. I will never forgive them for making me wait am extra 6 years for my pension. They are a shower that’s for sure thank you David for your excellent Reports that support us.
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If every women walked out of their employment for just 1 hour in support of this the media would be all over it and hopefully shame the government
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They have never taken into account the nurses of this country.
How can a 66 year old nurse do her job at that age!
The job is physically and mentally demanding and nurses are not fit physically fit at this age. Obviously the DWP have not taken the stress this causes for these women into account. The majority of 60 plus nurses are struggling to cope and are mentally and physically exhausted.
Would any of them like to be looked after by a 66 year old nurse in an emergency situation. The nurses should have been given the opportunity to hang up their nurses uniform at 60. Particularly like myself who have given 42 years caring for people.
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In reply to your comment Anne, It isn’t just about nurses. Lots of woman have physically demanding jobs. We are all in the same boat. Why should you expect nurses to be treated any differently from any other woman
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Carers jobs are just as heavy and demanding as nursing. Hoisting, stand aid, catheter care, bathing to name but a few tasks we have to do.
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Important to expose the fake statistics the Tory gov are putting out to support their evil propaganda against older women who they have deprived of their rightful paid for state pensions. Thank you for another great blog David Hencke.
Woman 63 ex-NHS 48 yrs working. No state pension for 3 more years of 6 yrs added.
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Important to expose the false evidence Tories use to support their propaganda against 1950s born women deprived of 6 yrs pensions.
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Thank you so much for all the hard work you’re doing for all us 50’s ladies. Most of us started our working lives at 15 paying national insurance and tax, believing it would be for our retirement at 60. I received my pension at 63years and 11months missing out on nearly 4 years, had I been born 2 weeks later I I would have had to wait until 66. I had no information about the wait until I myself rang the pensions people at 59years and 6months to be told my pension would be delayed as the retirement ae was rising. I had already cut my hours to minimum as I was caring for my 90year old mother who lived with my husband and I, so it came as a shock to learn at that late stage I would not be receiving my pension when expected.
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Thank you again David for your update on what is an absolute disgrace to women in this country. I cannot believe (well I should have anticipated it) that the DWP have manipulated the figures to show how much the cost of reversing this decision would cost, especially including men in the equation. As another person commented what has happened to the £280 million pounds of NI contributions.
As an aside I followed you blog on “your travels with you and your wife”. It was fantastic that you were both able to see so much of the world. I know fully well the problems in this country of accessible access or indeed the lack of such.
Have had to make an appointment with a private neurologist for my husband, which will be tomorrow, as he has been on the waiting list since last August and have been told there is a 50 week waiting list. I had to give up working at 51 years to look after my husband who can’t even feed himself. I am now 61. I am more fortunate than others though as I have a local government pension. God help those who don’t have a pension.
Thank you so much David and the back to 60 team.
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We only wanted a fair deal.
So what is the problem.
The reason why we were not involved with our pension and the reasons why we lost out.
So we have to challenge this ruling. Because fair is fair
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Absolutely great report. Thank you David.
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Dear David Hencke,
There is no cost in paying back the state pension not paid for half a decade since 2013. The government know this.
The costings do not factor in:
– women working paying in £5bn more in worker NI contributions each year.
– Non payment of pension credit and pensioner benefits since 2013 to men and women the same, which cannot be back claimed when not claimed in previous years.
– Millions of pensioners working beyond retirement age, so boss pays 13.8 per cent employer NI contributions however old you work, for each worker.
– Self employed pay Class 4 NI Contributions on profit thresholds, which do not earn towards the state pension at all.
– The top waged, mostly men, have the greatest of all tax breaks to the rich, by only paying 2 per cent worker NI contributions above a low maximum salary threshold. This discrimination means only working class pay the full standard 12 per cent on all their annual wages above starting payment threshold.
– The money going into the National Insurance Fund has risen since 2012-2016 by various changes from workers, and from the boss since 2017.
– So great has been the early death rate between ages 60-66 / quicker in retirement / doubling of pensioner deaths since at least 2013, that the works pension industry has made around £300bn excess profit by not having to pay out works pensions to the dead. If you are dead for works / private pensions, then you are dead not claiming state pension, you might agree.
– Women can no longer inherit the 100 per cent state pension from husband’s full NI record.
– Neither can divorced ladies.
– Widows pension ended in 2002, replaced with just 12 months bereavement allowance.
– And the list goes on and on and on.
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What a brilliant piece of investigative journalism. Wish there were more journalists with the same passion to factually expose Government departments. Bet a lot of Tory’s and their supporters will hate this. Well done David 👊👏🙏.
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Thankyou David soooooo much , and everyone else that is helping our cause!!!!!
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I believed the government would give me a pension at 65 !! It was built in to financial advise from accountants banks building societies and qualified employees at work in estate agents branches.
It’s wrong and must be put right
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Blatant Robbers came like thieves in the night
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So why bleat about how much it will cost to reverse if it was illegal to rob us all? It should never have happened in the first place. We should all be allowed to retire at the age we entered into the agreement with & any increase in state pension age should have taken place AFTER 1950’s women reached their retirement age…not rapidly increase it 3 times between 2010-2018. In 2010 my retirement age was 60. By 2018 it was 66. It’s outrageous. The DWP needed 6 months to come up with more excuses, more figures, more publicity on the costs incurred….when it was their poorly thought out cock up that has brought every 1950’s woman out to protest…alongside their partners, and their families. It’s about time the DWP were held to account by the public rather than the other way around.
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This is our money we have paid in for over forty years, they can not get away with this. Why is there never any tv coverage on this robbery. Thank you for helping us.
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We have paid our dues … The fact that the DWP have misappropriated or funds and then tried to cover up their crime by making us work more is just disgusting. Were you in the private sector you would be in jail. JUST PAY UP… for me.. you have made me work 6 years more than I needed to… I now have a back problem because my job is sedentary.. I would have not had this issue has I been showed to finish work at 60. Disgrace !!!!!
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The DWP & Government have committed fraud by taking money from us for a promised pension at the age of 60 it is just disgusting. They have told a pack of lies to damage our court case decision by releasing these figures to the Judges Press and Media. I really hope the Judges have been made aware of the lies that could sway their judgement and also that this article is circulated to the press.
Thank you David for all your hard work and effort on behalf us 1950s women.
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Surly it will not cost the DWP anything as all of the ladies have paid in that money too them, plus a great number of ladies have now passed on so less for DWP to pay out too. And I’m sure the money paid in has made a considerable amount of interest.
It’s not a cost to DWP it’s getting back your own money 🤔
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It sucks the government has stolen our money ! PAY UP NOW
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However much it is, it was taken from us. Not being able to afford to pay back is not a justification for keeping what you have stolen.
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The DWP are a joke, do they thing they can manipulate and deceive a generation of 50’s women out of their pensions. Any other pension administrators would be done for fraud . Fraud is the intentional deception to secure unfair or unlawful gain, to deprive a victim of of a legal right.
The DWP have lost billions, squandered millions in bonuses to DWP heirarchy, deceived everyone with their intentional deception saying the pensions fund had a major shortfall hence why they needed to increase the ages in the UK. I don’t recall them explaining why they had to increase the ages or where this money had mysteriously vanished to.
They stated in court they were anti the judicial review, if they have nothing to hide then why would that concern them.
They stated in court there was nothing the judicial review could do or the European human rights as our state pension was a benefit. That the 1950’s women had no legal remedy to get their money back.
The DWP changed the pension status to a benefit in 2016.
The DWP stated in 6 separate documents the 1950’s women had widespread ignorance
They’ve cobbled together some statistics from an old abacus to say how much it would cost the Country if they gave the back to 50’s women what is due. They probably used the same abacus on Universal credit, state pension data blunder, ESA blunders etc.
Compassion and humanity are not within their vocabulary, they act like machines. If they read and heard the plight of these women they would realise this is beyond serious it’s imperative that they put right what they have done.
I like many watch the billions of pounds we spend on MP’s salaries and the Brexit fiasco which will probably continue until another ice age returns.
The government spends billions abroad and on ridiculous manifestos that pale into insignificance and on top of that the massive cockups they make almost every week.
For once DWP do something for the right reasons and give the pensions to those that rammed well worked for it and need it.
Dee
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I have worked from the age of 15. I never received any notification of the change of year I was to receive my pension. I was born in May 1954 and won’t receive it until Jan 2020
The DWP should be ashamed of themselves, give us the money we are owed
Moira Smith
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Perhaps, if the government want to pursue equality, then all the public sector workers should only be allowed to claim their work pension when they are 66 instead of being able to retire early on final salary pensions or maybe forego their state pensions if their work pension is over £30k a year as this is funded by the tax payer!.
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Thank goodness you are keeping on top of thw DWP outrages.
This only demonstrates that even the DWP know they have behaved so badly that they have to manufacture and manipulate false figures to try to justify their gross deceit and illegal actions. They have afterall simply breached longstanding contracts which have been bought and paid for and then misappropriated the funds rather than meet their obligations – anyone else would be facing a prison sentence. This is further demonstrated by the fact that they attempted to hide their actions from many of the people affected; what did they think would happen – that an HR person would attend the retirement parties to let the women know they were not retiring afterall. Come on DWP – when you’ve been caught out in your nefarious practices; DONT DIG ANY DEEPER!!
Please keep up the good work. We have come to expect our Government to be dishonest but someone needs to keep even their excesses in check.
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They are STILL lying about it all…this cruel corrupt government will do everything in its power to bring the country to its knees… they are well on the way already!! We are a laughing stock the world over…. Brexit is a pure shambles, two total buffoons fighting for the Hot Seat….unemployment and poverty at its highest, and the LOWEST state pension of all!!!! Shame shame SHAME on them all….
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Disgraceful, where has all the money gone that people paid in and was not received by those who died before pensionable age??..stop sending money overseas. Look after our own
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I am sick to death of hearing how pensioners are better off than ever before across the media. Amazing very little in support of the Back to 60’s but maybe that’s because of the blanketing of information given by MP’s & DWP.
Sickened by the lies and manipulation from the DWP to callously cause so much despair to the 1950’s women.
I have just read the conversation between Baroness Ros Altman and Vanessa Feltz about Ian Duncan Smith’s conversation conspiring against the 50’s born women.
For any MP to come out with statements such as
“Ministers have been told to follow lines”
” You can’t say what you actually want to say”.
” Don’t engage, nobody not nobody allowed to talk about it”.
” Effectively let’s shut it down”.
” It’s all going to go away”
” It’s a labour inspired compaign”.
I despair at the deep desire by MP’s & DWP to do so much damage to a group of 50’s women who have worked all their lives. Driving them to misery poverty and despair. They’re beyond sadistic.
You will be expecting our votes in elections in the future, well you may get a massive shock. We cannot trust any of you to run a tap let alone the Country. You seem to forget you are there for the benefit of the Country and the people within it.
Discrimination is just that, so I suggest MP’s with the views of Ian Duncan Smith either keep their mouths tightly shut. Or work for the people and Country they are supposed to.
So my message to MP’s & DWP.
All 50’s women will fight and fight, do not expect us to forget and let things get brushed under the carpet. The reason for this fight is the financial desperation you have put us in. Women working in ill health supporting families to breaking point. Weve not asked for something for nothing we’ve worked , paid our dues and earned our pension.
Although you changed pension to a benefit in 2016 to manipulate where you want this to go.
Although youv’e concocted fictitious figures to inform the general public of how much it will cost the Country to give the money back in pensions. Hoping for a back lash against the back to 50’s review.
Although youv’e paraded umpteen reports in the media not once have you accepted any responsibility for the damage you have done. Do you not realise the 1950’s women have friends and family watching their daily plight. Are you totally without any humanity.
If the 1950’s women have one glimmer of light it’s the fantastic support from our legal team, supporters and David. If anyone can get us justice it’s them.
Dee
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Having written to the DWP on a number of occasions, they still have not been able to furnish myself and my wife with a copy of any correspondence they purport to have sent to her with regard to SPA increases. We had plenty of things about tax and other communications from the Government so they know where we live and were quite happy to take our taxes.
They also seem incapable of explaining how they fixed the date ranges for the increases in SPA for women – as it disadvantages some DOB ranges more than others.
When is the judicial review findings due? I guess it will be another day when they bury bad news or will be timed for the date of the Conservative Party coronation
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Very likely the JR to be around the time the new Tory leader is announced – but that won’t be done deliberately by the courts.
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Thank you, for your reports. I have to read each one section by section and then re-read them. The duplicity of MPs is staggering. Trust in the U.K Government is at zero for me since you have published. Uncovering the truth to tell us the truth. Thank you, once again for your reports. Brilliant reporting.
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I have today emailed my MP Priti Patel asking her to support us 50s women. I reminded her of our votes that I’m sure all MP’s will be wanting from us, well this works both ways, you support us and we support you.
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Thank you looking forward to receiving updated
Info….
I knew nothing about this stopped working at 60 making way for a younger person to move into my role…..
Now 63 got to wait yet another 3 years…..
Then the bomb drops, hallelujah the DWP stole my Pension of £40,000+.. You’re a total disgrace, utterly utterly shameful…..!!!!
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If they are now telling us that State Pension is now being classed as a benefit, what about their pension being classed as a ‘benefit’. Or, is it one rule for us, and another
for them!!!!!!!!
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Disgusting that these people lie- it is money we paid in and was stolen. As for not being able to afford to repay what about 590 million to commonwealth games etc how obscene when people are sick and dying!!! Nye bevan and Churchill would turn in their graves not to mention my grandparents who fought for this country!!!!!
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I have just messaged Owen Patterson Conservative MP North Shropshire asking for his support in the back to 60’s campaign. I’m not expecting miracles and will let you know his response.
Maybe we all need to make contact with MP’s to bang home how this is impacting on our lives. You may find you stir up a hornets nest, you may get a negative response but you may also get a positive response. In turn putting more pressure on DWP.
I know our legal team and David have done their utmost to help us but the jury’s still out on the judicial review. The more MP’s we can get to back our cause the better, the MP’s may get as frustrated from hearing from us as we are at having to send the messages.
Dee
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Hi David, I sent an email to my local MP on Monday (Priti Patel MP) asking for her support with the back 2 60 campaign, not had a reply yet, but these local MP’s need to remember who they rely on for votes. I know they are busy but an acknowledgment would have been nice
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I said I had sent a !etter to my MP Owen Patterson last week and received his two page letter in response yesterday.
I
He gave lengthy info on how the triple lock and new pension was most generous for many women with over 3 million women standing to receive an average of £550 more per year by 2030.
Is he for real the women of the 1950’s struggling like hell are hard pushed to get to 2020.
He stated the DWP had confirmed that all those women affected by the age increase were written to between January 2012 and November 2013. Those affected by the 1995 changes were also contacted between April 2009 and March 2011.
Now that’s not what we all know and documents uncovered prove it to be a lie.
He went on to say the high court granted permission for a Judicial review to proceed relating to the DWP handling of the change to women’s state pension age on 30th November 2018. He said he had been assured that if the Judicial review does not result in a ruling on the complaints, the Independent Case Examiner’s office can, at the request of the DWP , ‘re open the WASPI complaints. This would be on the understanding that (a) the matter is no longer the subject of legal proceedings and (b) there has been no legal determination on the issues which form the basis of the complaints campaign.
I think I understand this statement above but would be most grateful if someone could put it in plain speech. Is he dangling a carrot saying if we don’t win our judicial review the DWP can request an opening of the complaints only if were not pushing any legal challenges. So if that’s the case why would the DWP want to re-open the case if they’re all so adamant no malpractises have taken place?
His last statement was that we were all living longer and society will have to adjust to slightly longer working lives and he did not think there is a need to revisit the issue.
Who’s living longer? Statistics have changed we may be on this planet a little longer but quality of life is diminishing faster than the chances of us resolving Brexit.
David if you require a copy I can send one on to you.
Dee
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It doesn’t matter what the figure is – we paid that money in & it’s ours. Simple. It has been stolen by our government. Shame on you all. You are a disgrace.
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