Sir Keir Starmer has been left bracing for a heated reparations row over the UK’s role in the transatlantic slave trade as Commonwealth leaders prepare to defy the Prime Minister in Samoa.
The Labour leader faces mounting pressure from Commonwealth chiefs to address the issue, despite Starmer calling for focus on the future.
A draft statement, seen by the BBC, reveals plans to examine “reparative justice” for the slave trade, potentially leaving the UK owing billions of pounds in reparations.
The move comes as a direct challenge to Starmer’s stance, with Commonwealth officials already negotiating an agreement for further research and discussions.
Sir Keir Starmer during his visit to Samoa
REUTERS
The Commonwealth summit, which begins on Friday, is set to become a battleground on the issue of reparations.
In a copy of the draft document, leaders defying Starmer said: “Heads, noting calls for discussions on reparatory justice with regard to the transatlantic trade in enslaved Africans and chattel enslavement agreed that the time has come for a meaningful, truthful and respectful conversation towards forging a common future based on equity.”
It also commits to “prioritise and facilitate further and additional research” on the slave trade.
Fred Mitchell, foreign affairs minister of the Bahamas, was among those voicing support for reparations.
He said: “It’s only a matter of time before his position changes, I am confident of it.”
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King Charles meeting with those from the Commonwealth organisationPAMitchell added: “A declaration on reparatory justice seems innocuous enough to us, because really what should happen is there should be an apology and a commitment to reparations.”
Bahamas Prime Minister Philip Davis, who worked with Starmer in a set of criminal cases in the Caribbean in the early 2000s, also told POLITICO: “I don’t want to comment on his views about looking forward or on the past, but I think knowing what the past is should inform your decision-making towards the future.”
However, Starmer is unequivocal about rejecting the need for reparatory justice.
“On the question of which way we’re facing I think we should be facing forward,” he told reporters.
The Prime Minister is instead emphasising the immediate challenges facing Commonwealth nations, particularly around climate change.
He said: “I’d rather roll up my sleeves and work with them on the current future-facing challenges than spend a lot of time on the past.”
Starmer rejected to pay reparations PAHowever, Davis is hoping his previous encounters with Starmer could prove fruitful in helping those pushing for reparations.
“I’ve always known him to be a fair-minded, just individual,” he said.
Starmer is also facing growing pressure from Labour MPs in Westminster over the controversial issue.
Former Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell criticised Starmer’s stance, stating: “The argument Keir Starmer is putting forward… fails to understand that addressing the past is not a distraction but is essential to dealing with the future.”
Clapham & Brixton Hill MP Bell Ribeiro-Addy added: “We’re never going to be able to do that, or the nations that are most impacted are never going to be able to do that unless they are given a fighting chance.”
Foreign Secretary David Lammy has already been under fire during the debate after he was forced to distance himself from his previous calls for reparations to Caribbean countries in 2018.