ASW: The fight goes on

Julie has pledged to continue to fight the corner of former Allied, Steel and Wire workers who lost their occupational pensions when the company collapsed in 2002.

Following an announcement by the European Court of Justice last week that UK pension rules were "inadequate", Julie has tabled Early Day Motion 749, which has attracted 61 MPs' signatures since last Thursday alone. The EDM states:

That this House notes the judgment by the European Court of Justice that current UK measures to protect the expected pensions of members of occupational pension schemes in the event of their employer becoming insolvent are inadequate and unlawful under the requirements of the Insolvency Directive; further notes the terrible impact that the failure of successive governments in this regard has had on members of the ASW, UEF, Kalamazoo and other schemes and the estimated 125,000 pension scheme members who have lost their expected pensions, despite the £2.3 billion set aside for the Financial Assistance Scheme; believes that this situation is the fault of successive governments; and therefore calls upon the Government to take steps in the Pensions Bill currently before Parliament to ensure that those who lost their expected pension due to employer insolvency receive the pensions they saved for.

Julie said: "The Government has taken steps to ensure that this kind of loss of an occupational pension cannot impact so strongly on workers in the future with its new Pension Protection Fund; and there has been £2.3 billion put into a Financial Assistance Scheme for those who have already lost out. But I know that this is not enough.

"I have listened to those who have lost their pensions and they tell me of the misery which they and their families are going through. They worked for years, often decades, building up their pension for retirement. Now they have got to this point and the money is gone through no fault of their own. It is a running sore which I believe that this Government must help put right.

"There is a Pensions Bill currently before Parliament to which I hope to table an amendment to get ASW workers' pensions back. I hope to work with colleagues in the Commons to put right this ongoing injustice."

If you are an ASW pensioner affected by the collapse of the company in 2002 please do get in touch with Julie and let her know your views.