Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 6:33 pm on 20 March 2019.
Your point is made, but your point is incorrect. Unless you disbelieve Joyce Watson, Caroline Jones and others who have said in this Chamber that they did not receive a letter, amendment 2 is factually incorrect, and I invite you again to withdraw it, because it is just wrong. The Department for Work and Pensions have said that there were many women who were not corresponded with.
Now, Mark Isherwood, you speak in one way and then the amendments that you're placing are contradictory, in a sense, to what you've said. You've described to us what you said was a historical case, you've described to us what should have happened, and on all of the points of legislation, yes, you were correct, but the issue is not the legislation, the issue is not equalising the age—the issue is that women should've been told when they had time to plan. And far be it for me to defend the Labour Party, because, as you know, this is not my habit, but on this occasion, it is not their fault. Goodness knows it often is—[Laughter.]—but on this occasion, it is not their fault.
To draw my remarks to a close, Llywydd, I again invite the Conservatives to withdraw their second amendment, because it is factually inaccurate. I urge this Assembly to oppose both their amendments. And my final message, Llywydd, is to all the women so affected. I urge every single woman in this age group who did not get a letter to register your complaint with the Department for Work and Pensions. Every one of those, if Jane Hutt's figures are correct—and I relied on figures from the House of Commons, so I suppose it's not surprising that it's an underestimate—every single one of those almost 200,000 women: register your complaint. By doing so you become by implication part of the process that's subject to judicial review. I would urge you to go and talk to your Assembly Member or MP to get some assistance with that process. You may consider that that isn't a very sensible thing to do if your Assembly Member or MP is a Conservative. I urge you, all these women, to demand your rights, and the majority of us will stand with you as you do. [Applause.]