DEPUTY Prime Minister Angela Rayner was urged today to end the slow processing of firefighters’ pensions claims that leaves thousands losing out on hundreds of pounds every month.

Fire Brigades Union (FBU) general secretary Steve Wright has written to Ms Rayner, who is also head of the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government, calling on her to intervene.

He said: “It is disgraceful that some fire authorities are still failing to give retired firefighters what they are legally entitled to. 

“Thousands of firefighters are losing as much as hundreds of pounds a month.

“People who spent their careers protecting the public have been left in financial difficulty.”

A High Court ruling in 2018 said that about 10,500 affected firefighters were entitled to transfer seven additional years of contributions back from an older more generous pension scheme.

Judges said that the transitional arrangements of a less generous firefighters’ pension scheme imposed by the government in 2015 were discriminatory on the grounds of age.

Firefighters however needed to receive a Remediable Service Statement (RSS) by March 31 this year in order to move their contributions.

The FBU said that members have been informed that this deadline will not be met, leaving them out of pocket.

FBU national officer Mark Rowe said: “It is bad enough that firefighters had a less generous pension scheme imposed on them in 2015.

“As a minimum, they have a right to expect that their legal rights will be upheld. 

“The FBU won a landmark legal case to prove that the transitional arrangements were discriminatory.

“Fire authorities have a duty to act quickly, but have failed to do so. The government must now intervene.”

The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has been contacted for comment.