One of the UK’s High Court judges has allowed a review on the government’s ruling on raising the state pension age for women, thanks to an activist group representing women born in the 1950s.
The group, BackTo60, demands all women born in the ‘50s get the same amount of pension earnings they would have received at age 60, which was the state pension age until 2010, when the benefits age slowly began to rise due to longer life expectancy. It currently is 65 for both men and women, having been recently equalized in a controversial move. Up ahead, it is scheduled to gradually rise to 67 by 2028.
The group’s proposal, which the British government originally dismissed after claiming the plan would cost more than £70 billion, rests on their accusation that the government did a poor job of informing many women born in the 1950s that they would have to wait longer to get their pensions.
Following a planned Friday protest, BackTo60 was granted a two-hour hearing, which led to the court’s decision to review the group’s case.
BackTo60 claimed the pension policy “constitutes a gross injustice and is discriminatory.”
The activist coalition’s lawyer, Michael Mansfield , told the High Court “a minimum of 3.8 million women” were affected by the pension changes, some being given as little as 18 months’ notice.
The Department for Work and Pensions is declining comment on live legal proceedings.
The review date has not yet been scheduled.
Tags: BackTo60, High Court, Pension, UK