SDLP South Belfast MP Claire Hanna has said the UK Government must address issues surrounding women affected by changes to the state pension age.

She was speaking after the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman found the women were owed compensation.

Ms Hanna called on the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions to make an urgent statement to Parliament and outline his plans to correct the situation.

South Belfast MP Ms Hanna said:

“This ombudsman’s report spells out what we have known for many years – that these women born in the 1950s have been unfairly impacted by the decision to raise the pension age. The SDLP has been working with those affected for over a decade at Westminster and opposed this harmful policy in the Assembly, with around 77,000 women from Northern Ireland impacted by the rise in the pension age.

“I pay tribute to the WASPI campaigners who have refused to accept the repeated roadblocks put in their way as they fight to see this situation rectified and the disadvantage they have suffered acknowledged. This ruling would not have been possible without their persistence and determination to see pension justice delivered.

“I have called on the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions to come to Parliament and set out exactly how he plans to make this situation right. I have also tabled a number of urgent questions as we try to establish the next steps for WASPI women. The SDLP will continue to support WASPI women everywhere and put pressure on the UK Government until this situation is put right.”