Keir Starmer yesterday lost his battle to prevent Caribbean nations from using the Commonwealth summit to demand billions in reparations for the British slave trade.
Earlier this month, after The Mail on Sunday revealed that the issue would be on the table at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Samoa, No10 insisted it was ‘not on the agenda’ for the summit – and continued to do so until the final communique was published this weekend.
In the statement, Commonwealth leaders agreed that the ‘time has come’ for a discussion on the matter, more than 200 years after the slave trade was abolished by the UK parliament. Campaigners have called for £200 billion in reparations, with some demanding many multiples of that sum.
The UK fought hard to exclude direct language about reparatory justice in the communique, with Sir Keir insisting he wanted to work with the countries on ‘future challenges’ rather than dwelling on the past.
The leaders said they ‘agreed that the time has come for a meaningful, truthful and respectful conversation towards forging a common future based on equity’.
A group of 15 Caribbean governments had agreed to put the issue on the table after Mia Mottley, prime minister of Barbados, told the United Nations reparations for slavery and colonialism should be part of a new ‘global reset’.
The countries were encouraged by the fact that Foreign Secretary David Lammy, who is descended from enslaved people, has described how his ancestors heard ‘the twisted lies of imperialism as they were stolen from their homes in shackles and turned into slaves’.
Before flying back to the UK, Sir Keir was asked whether he had damaged his relations with Commonwealth nations in his attempt to take a hard line on the issue.
The Prime Minister downplayed the prominence of reparations on the summit’s agenda, saying: ‘In the two days we’ve been here, none of the discussions have been about money. Our position is very, very clear in relation to that.’
Reparatory justice for slavery can include financial reparations, but ‘non-cash’ options include debit relief, an official apology and educational programmes.
