State Retirement Pensions: Women

Department for Work and Pensions written question – answered at on 26 January 2026.

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Photo of Ellie Chowns Ellie Chowns Green Spokesperson (Foreign Affairs), Green Spokesperson (Social Care), Green Spokesperson (Housing, Communities and Local Government), Green Spokesperson (Business and Trade), Green Spokesperson (Defence), Green Spokesperson (Education), Green Party Westminster Leader

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the written statement of 11 November 2025 on Pension Update, HCWS1044, if he will make an assessment of the effectiveness of Automatic Pension Forecast letters relating to communication of State Pension age changes for 1950's born women.

Photo of Lauren Edwards Lauren Edwards Labour, Rochester and Strood

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Written Statement UIN HCWS1044 on Pensions Update of 11 November 2025, what information his Department holds on the reasons that the findings of the 2007 research report did not lead to a targeted public communications campaign to affected women.

Photo of Siân Berry Siân Berry Green Spokesperson (Crime and Policing), Green Spokesperson (Justice), Green Spokesperson (Transport), Green Spokesperson (Work and Pensions), Green Spokesperson (Culture, Media and Sport), Green Spokesperson (Democratic Standards)

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to Written Statement HCWS1044 on 11 November 2025, which findings contained in the 2007 DWP evaluation of the effectiveness of automatic pension forecast letters were not provided to his predecessor.

Photo of Torsten Bell Torsten Bell The Parliamentary Secretary, HM Treasury, The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Work and Pensions

The Secretary of State announced in his oral statement of 11 November 2025 that we will retake the decision made in December 2024 as it relates to the communications on State Pension age.

This was because findings from a 2007 report had not been drawn to the attention of the previous Secretary of State as its potential relevance to the making of her decision was not evident at the time.

The process to retake the decision is underway and it is important that we give this full and proper consideration. We will update Parliament on the decision as soon as a conclusion is reached.

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