AN INVERCLYDE campaigner leading the fight for 5,700 local woman hit by controversial changes to the pension age has vowed to fight on despite a court setback.

The national Women Against State Pension Inequality campaign saw a case dismissed by judges but Elizabeth McQuarrie, a former IBM worker, says the battle goes on.

She has been to Westminster and Holyrood lobbying in a bid to get the UK Government to compensate women who feel they have been unfairly penalised by a change in the law which brought forward the increase in the qualifying age.

WASPI Inverclyde co-ordinator Elizabeth, 64, said: "There are women living in Inverclyde who are devastated by this.

"They have lost out on £40,000 which belonged to them.

"Some of them are working well into their 60s with health problems.

"Imagine the difference that would make to this area if these women had that money to spend.

"We will keep fighting, we have to.

"I will never give up.

Elizabeth founded the local campaign group, which is part of a national network, after realising that she would no longer be entitled to her state pension aged 60.

The changes have affected women who were born in the 1950s.

The campaign argues that women were not given proper notice.

Elizabeth said: "I had no idea about any of this until a letter came through my door when I was 58 to tell me I would have to wait until I was 66 to claim my state pension.

"There are women out there who still have no idea.

"I am so angry at the injustice of it all for women.

"None of us have ever been involved in anything like this before.

"We were just looking forward to retiring with a stage pension.

"Some of the women have been working since they were 15."

MP Ronnie Cowan has been one of the campaign's most vocal supporters.

Elizabeth said: "We can't thank Ronnie enough for all he has done, he has had our back right from the start.

"We have had huge cross-party support."