Women's Pension Poverty should be Government Priority says Local MP
February 3, 2004 6:00 PM
Age Concern and the Fawcett Society launched a new report highlighting the fact that one in four single women pensioners live in poverty.
Attending the launch of the new campaign to raise awareness of women's pensions poverty, Annette Brooke MP, said:
"This is a very timely report to an urgent problem facing thousands of my constituents. It is time that the government woke up to the inadequacies of the current pensions system which allows one in four single women pensioners to retire into poverty.
"Many women pensioners have contacted me about their serious financial problems in retirement, despite having made contributions throughout their working life.
"There is far too little support for women who have taken time out to raise a family or provide care for parents or other family members. In the end, many women suffer tragically for having a family or providing care."
The report by the Fawcett Society and Age Concern has put this issue back on to the political agenda and has put forward four key reforms to make the system more fair for women. The reforms aim to remove some of the unfair anomalies in the system which disproportionately affect women.
The pensions system was created in the 1940s but has not kept pace with the changing lifestyles that women live today. Pressure is mounting from women of all ages for the Government to improve the pension system. If action is not taken now, many younger women will face old age in poverty just as their mothers and grandmothers did before them.
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