Boris Johnson tonight offered a tiny glimmer of hope to millions of women hit by a rise to their state pension age.
The Prime Ministerial favourite said he will "commit to doing everything I possibly can to sorting out" the issue if he enters No10.
While he made no firm commitment at all, Mr Johnson may have raised campaigners hopes.
And crucially, he said he was "not convinced" government forecasts about the costs of helping the women are "necessarily true".
It comes after - prompting a furious backlash from campaigners who heaped doubt on the figures.
Women born in the 1950s are having their state pension age hiked to make it 66 by 2020, the same as for men.
Activists say the change came at too short notice, warning letters didn’t arrive and happy retirements were "robbed".
Last month lawyers for two of the women affected, backed by the Back to 60 campaign, began a landmark legal case against the changes in the High Court.
Asked what he would do to address the injustice, Mr Johnson said: “I have made several representations already on behalf of my own constituents who fall into this category.
“And I must say the answer I’ve got back from the Treasury is not yet satisfactory.
“But I will undertake - if I’m lucky enough to succeed in this campaign - to return to this issue with fresh vigour and new eyes and see what I can do to sort it out.
“Because I’m conscious it’s been going on for too long."
Asked if he would "commit" to sorting it out, he said carefully: “I commit to doing everything I possibly can to sorting it out.
“But you know obviously the Treasury raise some stupefying sum that they say will be necessary to deal with it. I’m not convinced that’s necessarily true. Let’s see what we can do.”
But the notoriously slippery politician steadfastly refused to make any firm commitment.
He told the Tory hustings in Cheltenham: “I’m not making any more spending commitments tonight.”
