Burnham 'open' to calls for slavery apology but not reparations
Summary
Prime Minister Andy Burnham said the UK should hold a structured dialogue with communities affected by the transatlantic slave trade and that he is open to calls for a formal state apology. He rejected financial reparations, saying people in Britain today should not be held liable for historical wrongs.Key Facts
- Burnham will attend a Commonwealth leaders summit in the Caribbean next week.
- Caribbean nations have renewed calls for the UK to apologise and provide reparations.
- Burnham called the transatlantic slave trade a brutal violation and said Britain must face its past.
- The UK government has never formally apologised for slavery or paid reparations.
- Barbados Prime Minister Mia Mottley welcomed Burnham's statement and said she would engage in good faith while continuing to seek reparatory justice.
- The founder of The Repair Campaign said the statement fell short and called for a full formal apology.
- Under the 1833 law abolishing slavery, British plantation owners received payments for the loss of enslaved people; the UK finished paying the resulting debt in 2015.
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