UK PM Unveils Debt Relief Plan as He Rejects Reparations
In an opinion piece for a leading British national daily, released ahead of next week’s Commonwealth heads of government meeting, Burnham voiced “sorrow and regret” over the suffering of millions of enslaved people.
“The transatlantic slave trade was a brutal and barbaric violation of those people. They were denied their humanity,” he wrote.
He went on to describe the scale of that suffering: “They were separated from their families, treated as property and worked to their deaths. I want to express my sorrow and regret for the pain and suffering of so many millions of people, and to recognize the way it still shapes our world today.”
Burnham, who is due to travel to the Caribbean for the summit next week, said Britain would launch structured dialogue with affected countries and campaign groups. On the question of an apology, he wrote: “Listening to calls for a formal apology on behalf of the British state will form an important part of this process and I am open to them,” he wrote.
Reparations ruled out
The prime minister drew a hard line at compensation, however. “I do not believe that is the right answer,” he wrote.
He explained his reasoning: “I do not think that British people today can be held liable for historical wrongs, however heinous, which happened in a different age under different laws and in which they played no personal part.”
In place of payments, Burnham unveiled a plan to restructure the debt of the Commonwealth’s poorest nations. Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown would head the effort, which is expected to draw in international organizations.
Burnham pointed to mounting financial strain, saying debt-servicing costs for these countries have climbed to their highest level in more than 25 years. By the figures he cited, over 40% of the poorest Commonwealth nations now spend more on interest payments than on health.
“The Britain I believe in is confident, decent and brave,” Burnham wrote.
“We led the world in abolishing slavery – and we can show leadership again today.”
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