THE UK Government has ruled out paying reparations to countries affected by the slave trade or making a formal apology.
Keir Starmer and Foreign Secretary David Lammy (below) will attend the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (Chogm) in Samoa later this week, amid calls for reparations from Labour MPs and Caribbean governments.
At the summit, leaders will elect a new secretary general for the Commonwealth to replace Patricia Scotland, who held the position from 2016.
All three candidates in the running have called for reparations for countries which were plundered during the slave trade.
But the Prime Minister’s official spokesperson has ruled out compensatory payments and an apology from the Government.
A Downing Street spokesperson said: “Reparation’s not on the agenda for the Chogm meeting.
“The Government’s position on this has not changed, we do not pay reparations.
“The Prime Minister’s attending this week’s summit to discuss shared challenges and opportunities faced by the Commonwealth including driving growth across our economies.”
Asked about an apology, the spokesperson added: “The position on apology remains the same, we won’t be offering an apology at Chogm, but we will continue to engage with partners on the issues as we work with them to tackle the pressing challenges of today and indeed for the future generations.”
Five Labour MPs told The Guardian on Monday that the Government should at least be open to discussing reparations. Among others, Nadia Whittome (above) said the UK must open “up a dialogue with those countries whose wealth we extracted, about the impact of colonialism and slavery on their society and how the wrongs of the past can be righted”.
A Commonwealth spokesperson said: “The Commonwealth has historically facilitated frank conversations about difficult issues that have resulted in positive outcomes. Reparatory justice, which is more than just about reparations, may be discussed at Chogm, if any government proposes it. If so, the heads of government will decide how the discussions will proceed.’”
