Nottinghamshire former mineworkers vow to 'fight with last breath' against 'pension scandal'

Former mineworkers and mining widows claim they discovered – through a freedom of information request – that the government has taken £420 million from the Mineworkers Pension Scheme.

The government said that pension scheme members received payments that were 33% higher than they would have been due to a guarantee that they would increase with inflation, according to a BBC report.

In 1994, a privatisation agreement was signed, meaning the government would receive half of any surplus cash from a miners' pension scheme in return for guaranteeing that pensions would increase.

The government confirmed that it had received £4.8 billion from the scheme over the last 30 years.

However, campaigners believe the figure is closer to £8 billion and responded by marching to Downing Street to demand a fair share of what was promised.

Campaigners said they believe if current trends continue, the government could take another £1 billion over the next decade.

Mick Newton, former Thorseby miner and campaigner, said: “The government has now received over £5 billion from the Pension Fund since 1994 when a spurious government guarantee was put in place to protect Mineworkers Pensions.

“Moreover if current trends continue, the government will take yet another £1 billion over the next ten years.”

In 2019, mineworkers from across the UK presented a 100,000-paper petition to Downing Street to stop the ongoing injustice.

In 2021, a parliamentary select committee inquiry ruled heavily in favour of the 130,000 mineworkers and widows who belong to the pension scheme.

The BEIS parliamentary select committee ruled that the government should stop this practice and return money to the miners.

The committee also recognised this as “unconscionable.”

Campaigners said the current arrangements for mineworkers' pensions are “nothing short of an insult for decades of hard work in dangerous, life-threatening conditions”.

Mick added: “Mineworkers Pension Injustice is now recognised as a 'national scandal' but having mineworkers from across the UK coalfields travelling to London to make their voices heard when most have long term illnesses is also a national scandal.

“However we will fight with our last breath to right this wrong.”