On November 12, 2025, the UK government found itself back in the spotlight over a long-running controversy that has touched the lives of millions: the question of compensation for the so-called Waspi women. These women, born in the 1950s, were affected by changes to the state pension age that brought them in line with men. For years, they have argued that they were not given adequate notice of these changes, leaving many financially unprepared for retirement. Now, after years of campaigning, legal battles, and political back-and-forth, the government has announced it will reconsider its previous decision not to award compensation—thanks to the emergence of new evidence.
The Women Against State Pension Inequality (Waspi) campaign has become a rallying point for roughly 3.6 million women who say they were blindsided by the increase in the state pension age from 60 to 65. According to BBC News, the government initially apologized for a 28-month delay in sending out notification letters but had steadfastly refused any form of financial redress. The rationale? Ministers claimed that most women were aware the changes were coming, and that compensating everyone would be too costly—potentially up to £10.5 billion, as reported by Sky News and The Independent.
But what changed? The catalyst was the rediscovery of a 2007 Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) evaluation, which surfaced during ongoing legal proceedings. This document, previously undisclosed to former Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall, led to the halting of automatic pension forecast letters to those affected. As The Independent explained, this new evidence prompted the current Work and Pensions Secretary, Pat McFadden, to address the House of Commons and announce a formal review of the government’s stance.
“Since then, as part of the legal proceedings challenging the government's decision, evidence has been cited about research findings from a 2007 report,” McFadden told MPs, according to Sky News. He continued, “In light of this, and in the interest of fairness and transparency, I have concluded that the government should now consider this evidence. This means we will retake the decision made last December as it relates to the communications on State Pension age.”
Yet, McFadden was careful to temper expectations, cautioning, “Retaking this decision should not be taken as an indication that government will necessarily decide that it should award financial redress.” He emphasized the need for thoroughness and transparency, promising to update Parliament once a conclusion is reached. No timescale for the review has been set, leaving many campaigners anxiously awaiting the outcome.
The Waspi campaign, meanwhile, sees this as a significant breakthrough. Angela Madden, chair of the group, told BBC News, “The government now knows it got it wrong and we are pleased they are now trying to do it properly. We hope they also try to do it quickly.” She didn’t mince words about what she believes is the only just outcome: “The only correct thing to do is to immediately compensate the 3.6 million Waspi women who have already waited too long for justice.” Madden also highlighted the urgency, noting to The Independent that “every 13 minutes a Waspi woman dies.”
At the heart of this saga is the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman (PHSO), which last year delivered a damning assessment of the DWP’s handling of the issue. The PHSO found that poor communication by the department amounted to “maladministration,” causing many women to lose “opportunities to make informed decisions” about their retirement. While the Ombudsman stopped short of finding evidence of “direct financial loss,” it nonetheless recommended compensation for those affected, typically in the range of £1,000 to £2,950 per person. The government, however, rejected this advice, arguing that such a payout would be neither fair nor proportionate for taxpayers. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, who as opposition leader had pledged “fair and fast compensation” in 2022, later argued that the taxpayer “simply can’t afford the tens of billions of pounds” in payments.
The origins of the Waspi movement can be traced back to the 1995 Pensions Act, which set out a timetable to equalize the state pension age for men and women by 2020. But the 2011 Pensions Act, passed under the coalition government, accelerated this timeline, bringing the new qualifying age for women forward to 2018. The change, and especially the speed with which it was implemented, sparked outrage among those affected—many of whom say they received little or no notice and were forced to rethink their retirement plans at short notice.
As the government now re-examines its position, the legal battle continues. The Waspi campaign has pursued a judicial review of the government’s decision not to pay compensation, even raising funds to cover legal costs. The case was scheduled to go to the High Court in December, as reported by BBC News. The government has since informed the court of its intention to review the decision in light of the new evidence.
It’s a political hot potato, too. Labour, now in government, faces criticism for backtracking on its earlier support for the Waspi cause. The party had previously backed the women’s campaign under Jeremy Corbyn’s leadership, but in office, it has cited the cost to taxpayers as a reason not to proceed with compensation. This reversal has not gone unnoticed, with campaigners and some MPs accusing the government of betraying earlier promises and failing to deliver justice for a generation of women.
For many of the Waspi women, the stakes are deeply personal. They argue that the lack of timely information about the pension age changes upended their financial planning, forced some into hardship, and left others scrambling to find work or support themselves as they approached what they thought would be retirement. The government’s apology for delayed communications and the PHSO’s finding of maladministration have only added fuel to their demands for redress.
What happens next? The government’s review is underway, with officials set to scrutinize not only the 2007 DWP report but also any other documents or surveys that may have been overlooked. As McFadden told the Commons, “It is important that we give it full and appropriate consideration.”
Whether this process will ultimately lead to compensation remains an open question. But for the millions of women who have campaigned for recognition and justice, the government’s decision to revisit the issue marks a turning point—one that could finally bring closure to a bitter chapter in the UK’s pension history.
For now, the Waspi women and their supporters wait, hopeful that this long-awaited review will deliver the fairness and transparency they’ve spent years fighting for.
