Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said he is “open” to the possibility of the UK issuing a formal apology for its role in the transatlantic slave trade. He has, however, ruled out considering financial reparations.
Burnham said he wanted a “dialogue with those affected by the slave trade” and was open to “calls for an apology”. He dismissed the idea of paying financial reparations, saying they were “not the right answer”.
The comments come ahead of a Commonwealth leaders summit in the Caribbean next week, which Burnham will attend. Caribbean nations have renewed calls for the UK to apologise for its role in the slave trade and to pay reparations, as King Charles III tours the region.
“Face up to the past”
Burnham described the transatlantic slave trade, in which Africans were trafficked to the Americas, as a “brutal and barbaric violation”. He said Britain must “face up to the past”.
In an article for the Guardian, he wrote: “I do not think that British people today can be held liable for historical wrongs, however heinous, that happened in a different age under different laws and in which they played no personal part.”
He said Commonwealth countries had for years been asking for an “honest conversation”. Burnham said he wanted to offer a “structured dialogue”, adding: “Listening to calls for a formal apology on behalf of the British state will form an important part of this process. I am open to them.”
A government source told the BBC that an apology was “morally the right thing to do”. Downing Street believes it is in the UK’s interest to strengthen the Commonwealth at a time when China and Russia are seeking to expand their influence. This week, President Vladimir Putin hosted a Russia-Africa summit in Moscow.
Reactions
Prime Minister of Barbados Mia Mottley, who has sought reparations, welcomed Burnham’s statement. She said she would engage in good faith while still seeking reparatory justice.
Denis O’Brien, founder of The Repair Campaign, said Burnham’s statement was disappointing and did not go far enough. “The British Government must stop obfuscating and give a full and formal apology now. This would be a significant and symbolic first step towards reparatory justice,” he said.
Historical background
The British government has never formally apologised for slavery or offered to pay reparations. Burnham has kept the position of his predecessors and has stopped short of considering reparation payments.
From the 16th century, English authorities and the monarchy were prominent participants in the centuries-long slave trade. Britain later played a key role in ending it, when Parliament passed a law to abolish slavery in 1833.
Under that law, British plantation owners were paid for the loss of their enslaved people. The UK only finished paying off the debt it incurred to fund those payments in 2015.
