Question to the Ministry of Defence:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what is the cost of reinstating the pensions of war widows who lost their pensions when they remarried or chose to cohabit, and who have not had their pensions restored to them since the changes to pension entitlement in April 2015; and whether they have any plans to restore their pension entitlements.

I refer the noble Baroness to the answer given by my right hon. Friend the Minister for Defence Personnel and Veterans (Mark Lancaster), in the House of Commons on 16 July 2015 to Question number 6874 to the hon. Member for Leeds North West (Greg Mulholland).

It has been the policy of successive governments that changes or improvements to all public service pension schemes should not be applied retrospectively.

Therefore, there are no plans to reinstate war widows' pensions for war widows who remarried between 1973 and 2005.