Pensions Minister, Paul Maynard, has defended the Department for Work and Pensions’ (DWP) guaranteed minimum pension (GMP) factsheet, arguing that there is little suggestion that it should be amended.

Work and Pensions Committee chair, Stephen Timms, previously wrote to Maynard to share concerns around the "longstanding issue" ahead of the new minister's first scheduled appearance before the committee.

In particular, Timms argued that the DWP failed to adequately communicate the impact of the new state pension on people with large GMPs who reached state pension age under the early years of the new state pension (between 2016 and 2021).

He also said that communication from members of the public suggested that a revised version of the factsheet was needed to better explain the potential impact on individuals, particularly, as inflation rose.

However, in his response, Maynard said that “there has been little suggestion from the correspondence we’ve received that the factsheets contents should be amended or that the information it contains is unclear”.

Maynard confirmed that the DWP received 50 requests for further information from those who responded to its GMP factsheet, highlighting these cases as evidence of the underlying complexity surrounding this issue.

“Nevertheless, our key learning is that regardless of the need to give confidence to people about the integrity of a radically reformed state pension system we should have provided timely, well signposted and accessible information to people about all the features of the change,” Maynard wrote.

“In addition, we continually review our departmental communications as communication methods evolve and we learn what is most effective.”

In separate correspondence with Timms, Maynard also provided an update on requests to meet with the Pensions Action Group (PAG), confirming that he would be happy to meet with PAG members in "due course" to listen to their concerns.

However, Maynard noted that the DWP and its ministers have engaged extensively with PAG and have considered very carefully the points that they have raised about the level protection offered by the Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS).

“It is, therefore, unlikely that I will have any new solutions to address difficulties experienced by members of the FAS,” he stated.

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