Former miners called on the UK government to release pension funds.

Former Welsh miners are urging the UK government to release £2.3bn of reserves from its pension scheme to pay for it.

The government issued an equivalent amount. Miners Pension Scheme (MPS) In the Budget in October, but money is still frozen for an alternative pension scheme, the British Coal Staff Superannuation Scheme (BCSSS).

Lindsay Hopkins, 75, is one of more than 3,000 ex-miners who could be affected and said the government had “thrown us to the wolves” by not treating the two schemes equally.

The Department of Energy and NetZero said they were to discuss the matter with the Treasury.

Mr Hopkins started working at Merthyr Vale Colliery and continued working in the industry in private mines until 2010 after privatisation.

He retired at the age of 60 due to ill health, including chest and joint problems.

He said he was “very bitter” that the BCSSS reserves had not been released to the pensioners.

“Coal, steel and iron put this country where it is and look at us now – they’ve thrown us into the rough,” he said.

Mr Hopkins said he felt miners and their pensions had been mistreated by successive governments.

“I have no faith in the government. I have no faith in whoever the government is. They have their claws on it and they are going to keep it instead of giving it to somebody else.

“It’s not theirs, it’s ours.”

Under an agreement reached 30 years ago, the government is entitled to half of the extra cash in exchange for guaranteeing its value, although no money has been taken since 2015.

The previous Labor manifesto said that both MPS and BCSSS pension reserves would be released, however the 2024 manifesto mentioned only MPS.

BCSSS pension trustee Bladen Hancock said he believes it was an oversight, but it needs to be corrected immediately.

“It’s something we feel very strongly about,” he said.

“We’ve earned this money, we’ve had to fight for it. We’ve suffered for it, we’ve bled for it and we’ve died for it.

“This is our money and we want the government to end this injustice and return our money to us.”

Mr Hancock said the money would boost the pensions of those in the BCSSS scheme by 50 per cent at a time when many were struggling with the cost of living.

“We’re all old. We’re not saving for the future. It’s a rainy day.”

Lesley Davies, 77, from Nixonville in Merthyr Vale, said she was watching her former colleagues die, and action was needed soon, and equity between the two pension schemes was needed.

“I don’t know why they didn’t because we all worked in the same industry and it’s time they sort out our pensions sooner rather than later,” he said.

“We are dying as a group and there are men who will not have this pension. I don’t know how long it will take to get it and some more will be lost.”

Gareth Payne, a 65-year-old ex-miner from Truderhew, said he thought the government “hoped we would go away” but “at the end of the day, we all worked in the same place and we all took the same risks”.

BCSSS trustees recently met with Industry Minister Sarah Jones, Bleddyn Hancock said it was a positive meeting.

“She was very sympathetic, and I think she would like to do something about it, however the matter is now with the Treasury and we are waiting for their approval which I hope we will get, but it There is no agreement, so the more pressure we put on the government to end this injustice, the better,” he said.

The Department for Energy Conservation and Net Zero said: “The British Coal Superannuation Scheme operates differently from the Mineworkers’ Pension Scheme, as agreed by the scheme’s trustees.

“Minister Jones recently met with BCSSS trustees and has committed to talking to Treasury about their proposals.”

“The government has not taken any money from the surpluses of the scheme since 2015. All this surplus is purely used for future pensions.”