Llanelli mining families win pension justice after decades of campaigning
Around 150 former mineworkers and their families in Llanelli are set to receive increased pension payments following changes to the British Coal Staff Superannuation Scheme (BCSSS) announced in the Budget.
The adjustment will see an average uplift of £100 a week for eligible members, with payments backdated and expected to begin before the end of the year.
Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said the change would deliver a 41% uplift to annual pensions for 40,000 former mineworkers across the UK, with payments backdated and expected to begin before the end of the year.
“A victory for relentless campaigning”
Dame Nia Griffith, MP for Llanelli, welcomed the announcement, saying:
“For far too long former miners in Llanelli have had to wait for the pension settlement they deserve. I am pleased to see a Labour Government taking decisive action to finally end this injustice and deliver what is rightfully owed back to mining families.”
Griffith has campaigned alongside ex-pit workers and other MPs representing coalfield communities to secure the change, which builds on previous action taken on the Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme.
Government and union response
Ed Miliband said the transfer of the investment reserve was a response to long-standing calls from campaigners:
“We owe the mining communities who powered this country a debt of gratitude. I pay tribute to those who have fought for a fair deal — without them this would not have happened.”
Chris Kitchen, General Secretary of the National Union of Mineworkers, said:
“The additional pensions this will provide will benefit not just the pensioners but our former mining communities.”
Welsh Liberal Democrats welcome move
David Chadwick, Welsh Liberal Democrat Westminster Spokesperson, also welcomed the announcement, saying:
“This is welcome news for the roughly 4,000 former miners who were denied full access to their pension pots in last year’s budget. I am proud to have been the only Welsh MP to consistently press the UK Government to right this historic injustice.”
He added that many former miners now suffer ill health as a result of their work, and said it was only right they receive the full pension support they’ve long been owed.
What happens next
The trustees of the BCSSS are expected to begin uplifted payments before the end of the year, with adjustments backdated to align with previous changes made to the Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme.
The announcement follows years of campaigning by former mineworkers and their representatives, and marks a significant change in how surplus investment reserves are handled within the scheme.
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