FIRST Minister Nicola Sturgeon and a host of MPs and MSPs gathered next to the Mary Barbour Statue in Govan yesterday alongside several hundred WASPI supporters.
The sky threatened rain but the cacophony of noise as the procession headed up Govan road with drums booming, whistles blaring and cries of “hey, hey, Mrs May, how many women have you robbed today?” gave the marchers an unstoppable aura.
Women born in the 1950s have had their state pension qualifying age changed by up to six years and face losses of up to £48,000.
And state pension protest groups from all over Scotland and from England travelled to Glasgow to take part in the procession.
Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf was part of the parliamentary delegation, which included Alison Thewliss, Patricia Gibson, Ronnie Cowan, Carol Monaghan, Mhairi Black, Martin Docherty and Chris Stephens.
“It’s such a great turn out today,” Yousaf said. “It’s something that every woman and man should stand up for. I’m delighted to be here and it’s about time that Theresa May paid out and did justice by these women.”
Mhairi Black, a major advocate of the WASPI cause, took pictures with supporters.
“It is brilliant to see this number of women turn up despite the weather, but the number of women who turned up from down south is brilliant.
“It shows that the desire is still there and that nobody is giving up,” she said as she walked through the throng of people.
Black then delivered a speech next to the Barbour statue – which wore its own WASPI sash.
“One thing is clear: this cause will exact change,” she said.
“No one is debating whether or not an injustice happened here. Rest assured that you have our support.”
The First Minister then arrived to address the crowd.
“It is a privilege to be here to stand in solidarity with modern day Mrs Barbour army.
“This is one of the biggest injustices perpetrated against women in this country and you can call it injustice, bad policy or, if you are a Tory or a LibDem: unintended consequences. I call it what it is, and that’s downright robbery,” she said.
“Your pension are by international standards not generous,” she went on.
“But it is not acceptable for that money you worked for to be taken away from you. Tens of thousands of women across Scotland and hundreds of thousands across the UK are losing tens of thousands of pounds. If that is not theft, I don’t know what is.
“Mary Barbour did not give up. The many people who fight injustice won’t give up.
“It is no surprise that I want to see pensions taken out of the hands of Westminster. The Scottish Parliament and Scottish Government can deliver justice for WASPI women.”
Sturgeon continued, stating that the issue would have been a much larger scandal, had it been the pensions of men at stake.
“It is not just economic injustice. This is gender injustice.
“Of course, if it was happening to men it would be an international scandal. Scotland stands with you.
“Let us not rest until it is delivered to all of you,” she concluded.
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel