Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. I'm pleased to move this motion today, tabled in the name of my colleague Neil Hamilton. I have to declare an interest at the outset, Dirprwy Lywydd: I am a woman unfairly affected by state pension age changes, and one of the women against state pension inequality.

In 1995, the then Conservative Government introduced a new Pensions Act, which would have raised the age of retirement for women to 65—the same age as men—by 2020. This would have given women at least 15 years to change their retirement plans—15 more years of savings to help meet the shortfall in their pension funds. However, the Conservative-Lib Dem coalition Government changed these plans. The Pensions Act 2011 sped up the changes, meaning that women's state pension age would increase from 63 in 2016 to 65 in November this year, and on it goes. The Act also stated that both men and women's state pension age should increase to 66 by 2020. I, like thousands of my compatriots, was not personally notified of these changes. I received no letter; I received no explanation. No-one told me my retirement plans would have to change, but, unlike many other women in this situation, I am lucky: I am still in employment; I am not facing destitution. Sadly, many women have been badly affected by these changes, and I have heard of at least one woman who took her own life as a result of the financial black hole she found herself in. No-one should be treated this way—no-one. Nobody disagrees that men and women's retirement ages shouldn't be the same. However, these changes shouldn't have been introduced without decades of notice, years to plan and time to make additional financial arrangements.

As it stands, the changes to women's pensions were introduced too fast, too haphazardly. I only learned of the changes via an offhand remark made to me one day, and my situation is far from unique. Women are being made to suffer because of a lack of foresight and planning by successive UK Governments. Women are being made to suffer because of the Tory and Lib Dem pursuit of austerity. And women are being made to suffer because of Labour's mishandling of public finances and their failure to repeal the 1995 Act. I ask those Labour politicians who support the WASPI movement—you were in Government from 1997 until 2010—why did you not take action then? Unfortunately, we can't correct past mistakes, but we can mitigate the effects those mistakes are having on women born in the 1950s.

Our motion before you today calls for a bridging pension that supplies an income until state pension age that is not means-tested, compensation for the absence of a bridging pension to those women who have already reached their state pension age, compensation to all those who have not started to receive a bridging pension by an appropriate date that would be sufficient to recover lost monetary interest, and compensation to the beneficiaries of the estates of those who are deceased and fail to receive a bridging pension. This is not too much to ask, and I hope that Members here will support this motion today. I hope the Welsh Government will fight the WASPI women's corner, and I hope that the UK Government will see sense. 

There are things we can do here in Wales without waiting for the UK Government to acknowledge the pain and suffering the policies have created. Women born in the 1950s now find themselves having to work for another six years and the Welsh Government can assist them in both finding work and ensuring that employers take on employees close to retirement age, whilst at the same time fighting for the women of the 1950s to receive what they are owed. They were robbed. 

I have been told of numerous examples of women being denied employment because of their age. A lady contacted me and stated, 'I'm 62, I receive no pension as I was promised. I'm rendered unemployable due to my age. I'm destitute and depend on friends and family.' This should not be the case, but I doubt it's unique.

We have to encourage employers to see the benefits of employing people in the final years of their working life. These women will bring with them a lifetime of experience, a wealth of knowledge, and a work ethic forged through decades of hard graft. I urge the Welsh Government to do all they can to encourage employers to invest in WASPI women, to work with employers to ensure that there is meaningful employment for those forced to work longer, but who are also fighting to survive and want what they are owed. 

I urge Members to show their support for WASPI women by supporting this motion before you today. Show your support for WASPI women by telling the UK Government that it is unacceptable how these women are being treated. The pension changes wouldn't have had much impact on women in their 30s and maybe 40s, but have had a devastating impact on women in their 50s and 60s. The UK Government clearly don't care about the impact these policies are having, as evidenced by their blank refusal to roll back the changes. 

It is now up to each and every one of us here today to ensure the impact these changes are having are mitigated and that the people have what they're entitled to. I don't want to see any other woman forced to make a choice between living in destitution or taking their own life. These women have worked hard for decades, they shouldn't be facing poverty in retirement. They should be receiving the pension they were promised for decades of hard work.

No Government should have the right to break these promises and put these women in poverty. These women planned their retirement according to these promises, and these promises were broken. No-one has the right to take their money from these women. It's worth noting, some women, after 43 years of hard physical work, unable to work physically anymore, are now left without their pension. So, we have to act. The Welsh Government has to act. The UK Government must be forced to act. I urge you all to support the motion I've put before you today.