Labour MP and former shadow minister Bell Ribeiro-Addy has warned the “Commonwealth will crumble” if the government does not reopen talks on reparations for the slave trade.
It comes as the prime minister faces growing demands to rethink the UK’s position on the issue as he heads to Samoa for a major Commonwealth meeting.
On Monday, Downing Street rejected demands, saying the issue of reparations is “not on the agenda” for the event and “we won’t be offering an apology”.
But Ms Ribeiro-Addy, a former shadow immigration minister, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme “an apology is absolutely free”, dismissing attempts from both this government and the previous government to focus on the present rather than unpick wrongs of the past.
Speaking about Sir Keir’s approach, the MP for Clapham and Brixton Hill said: “We still can’t seem to be able to go beyond the line of sorrow and deep regret, which are not fitting sentiments for one of the worst crimes in humanity.
“I mean, there are many different ways to go about compensation and reparations. Reparations is not just about finances, but an apology is absolutely free.”
She warned that it is impossible for nations impacted by the slave trade to focus on the present “unless they are given a fighting chance”, adding: “They continue to suffer the economic impact of enslavement and colonialism, and we have a responsibility for that, whether or not we were directly involved.
“We also have to remember that … the UK government took the largest loan it ever had to pay off the slave owners, not the enslaved.
“We only finished paying that one off in 2015 which means that people like myself, the Windrush generation, yourselves, we all contributed to paying slave owners - people whose families remain some of the richest in society.
“I worry about the government not looking at the issue now, because, you know, if we’re not careful, the Commonwealth will crumble.”
Meanwhile, recently resurfaced footage showed foreign secretary David Lammy, who will join Sir Keir in Samoa, supporting the case for reparations while he was a backbench Labour MP in the wake of the Windrush scandal.
The prime minister, who will arrive in Samoa tomorrow, is set to face a showdown next year with a delegation of Caribbean nations over the issue.
The 15 member states of the Caribbean Community (Caricom), who have previously set out formal demands for reparations in a 10-point plan, are planning a delegation to the UK in 2025 with an updated list of demands.
This year’s gathering of the heads of government for the 56 Commonwealth nations will see leaders elect the new secretary general. All three candidates seeking the top job have called for reparations to countries that were affected by slavery and colonialism.
While the prime minister’s official spokesperson insisted he would not be discussing reparations at the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting (Chogm) this week, sources in Samoa told TheTelegraph that a draft of the agenda includes a section on slavery reparations.
They warned that Sir Keir “cannot escape” the issue.
But the PM’s spokesperson said on Monday: “The government’s position on this has not changed, we do not pay reparations.
“The prime minister is attending this week’s summit to discuss shared challenges and opportunities faced by the Commonwealth including driving growth across our economies.”
