The UK government has confirmed that it will not issue an apology for its role in the transatlantic slave trade during the upcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Samoa. Additionally, no reparations will be paid, Downing Street announced.
This stance could place Prime Minister Keir Starmer at odds with several nations as he attends the summit. Despite increasing calls from Caribbean leaders for reparations, Starmer remains opposed to both apologising and offering financial compensation for Britain’s involvement in slavery.
But the Starmer’s official spokesman insisted he would not be discussing reparations at the gathering. “Reparation’s not on the agenda for the Commonwealth Heads of Government 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,” he said.
Asked again about an apology, the spokesman added: “the position on apology remains the same; we won’t be offering an apology at CHOGM.
“But we would 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 backbenchers have urged the Starmer and Foreign Secretary David Lammy to address reparations for slavery and colonialism while they are in Samoa, the Guardian newspaper has reported.
Lammy was recently revealed to have supported the case for such measures to compensate for Britain’s role in the slave trade while he was a backbench Labour MP.
The three candidates gunning to become the next secretary-general of the 56-nation Commonwealth have also supported such reparations.
Mamadou Tangara of Gambia, Ghana’s Shirley Botchwey, and Joshua Setipa of Lesotho are contesting to replace the UK’s Patricia Scotland as secretary-general of the association.
King Charles III, the head of the Commonwealth is expected to attend this week’s summit following his tour in Australia.
Charles was berated by an Australian senator as he visited the country’s capital Canberra.
Lidia Thorpe, who campaigns on First Nations issues, shouted anti-colonial messages as the king made a speech at Parliament House, and declared: “You are not my king”.
While a majority of Commonwealth leaders are expected to attend the summit, India’s Narendra Modi and South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa will be noticeably absent.
The two leaders have chosen instead to prioritise the BRICS summit in Russia at the invitation of President Vladimir Putin.