“Stop the excuses and time wasting and just pay up” – pension injustices must be put right. Plaid Cymru calls on the Labour Welsh Government to act on historical pension injustices and support victims of these scandals.
“Stop the excuses and time wasting and just pay up” – pension injustices must be put right.
Plaid Cymru calls on the Labour Welsh Government to act on historical pension injustices and support victims of these scandals.
In a motion to be debated in the Senedd on Wednesday (21 May 2025), Plaid Cymru has called on the Labour Welsh Government to ‘make the case for action’ on historical pension injustices. Labour’s response was to ‘delete’ the calls.
The Plaid Cymru motion notes the significant and long-standing pension injustices, and the inaction of successive UK Governments to rights these wrongs. The motion also calls on the Welsh Government to make representations to the UK Government on these issues.
Three examples of pension injustices are highlighted in the motion; 1950s women who have been denied justice by UK Labour, workers from Allied Steel and Wire who have not received the pensions they are owed, and the British Coal staff who were excluded from the Miners Pensions Scheme.
Supporters of the motion, such as John Benson, will be in attendance on the day of the debate, to show support for the Plaid Cymru motion, and solidarity with other individuals and groups who have been victims of such injustices.
Mr Benson worked for Allied Steel and Wire for 41 years, before finding out in 2002 that he was set to lose his job and pension, to which he had contributed to for 20 years. The situation left Mr Benson ‘on the verge of a nervous breakdown’.
John Benson, who has campaigned for years in an attempt to right this injustice on behalf of the Allied Steel and Wire workers, said:
“The UK Government had assured us these pensions were safe and fully protected by the law no matter what difficulties their employer faced. How wrong we were to have trusted UK Ministers, as we were lied too, and stitched up for playing by the rules.
“Plaid Cymru have been with us from day one, and have never ever given up on us.
“The truth is clear for everyone to see: we were robbed of our promised pensions, the UK Government are guilty of the biggest social injustice this country has ever known. It's about time a Minister stood up in the House of Commons, and told the decent men and women who worked at ASW: ‘we apologise on behalf of all those Ministers past and present who have betrayed the trust you gave them, and will finally pay you the pensions you were promised in full’.
“Back date these pensions to when they were due to be paid, plus compensation for all the heartache and suffering it has caused the families. In other words, stop the excuses and time wasting, and just pay up.”
Plaid Cymru spokesperson on Finance, Heledd Fychan MS said:
"Whether it’s 1950s women, British Coal workers, or ASW staff, both the Conservatives and Labour have rejected their calls for justice. We have come to expect Conservative Governments turning their back on our communities, but these communities will feel betrayed seeing a Labour government reject their calls.
“That is the only word to describe Labour’s attitude towards these groups – betrayal. They claimed to stand by our working communities, they claimed to stand with 1950s women. But just as with the workers of Port Talbot, Labour Governments in Cardiff Bay and Westminster have turned their backs on them and have let these injustices remain unresolved.
“Plaid Cymru’s position is clear – those affected by pension injustices deserve their calls answered, and deserve justice for the trauma they were forced to endure. Unlike this Labour Government in Wales, that are happy to stay quiet in the face of such injustice, Plaid Cymru will always stand up for those wronged by Westminster’s neglectful attitude towards working communities.”