Oxfam has sparked fierce criticism from leading Oxbridge academics after publishing a report claiming Britain owes India £52trillion in colonial-era reparations.
The charity’s controversial report, released yesterday, has been accused of “corruption and weaponising history” and producing “bogus” claims that could damage public trust.
The call is Oxfam’s first explicit call for Western nations to pay reparations to their former colonies.
The proposed “climate debt” refers to the compensation Western countries should pay to poorer nations for the costs of climate change, arguing that the wealthiest individuals and corporations should bear the cost through increased taxation.
The call is Oxfam’s first explicit call for Western nations to pay reparations to their former colonies
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Oxbridge professors have condemned the report’s methodology, questioning the credibility of its astronomical financial demands.
The report, titled “Takers not Makers: The unjust poverty and unearned wealth of colonialism”, has demanded that Western nations pay at least £4trillion annually in reparations and “climate debt” to former colonies.
“Reparations must be made to those who were brutally enslaved and colonised,” the report states, calling for a “radically more equal” economic system to end poverty.
“It is a matter of the deepest regret that an organisation like Oxfam, supposedly founded to feed the world, should put its name to the corruption and weaponisation of history in this manner,” Prof Lawrence Goldman of St Peter’s College, Oxford, told The Telegraph.
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“Oxfam depends on public trust in the accuracy of information it provides. Producing bogus history warped by ideology hardly encourages anyone to dig deep in their pockets and send them cash,” Goldman said.
Prof Robert Tombs, a fellow at St John’s College, Cambridge, dismissed the £52trillion figure as “so absurd that it discredits the whole report”.
“Oxfam should beware of destroying its own reputation by allegations so lacking in foundation that they suggest either dishonesty or astonishing ignorance,” he said.
Prof Goldman further argued there was a “reverse argument” to consider, suggesting that Indians could owe Britain for protection “from becoming part of the French overseas empire in the 18th century or being swallowed by Tsarist Russia in the 19th century, or being overrun by the Japanese in the 20th century”.
“But arguments of this type, in which history becomes ammunition for a political assault, are worthless,” Goldman added.
Oxbridge professors have condemned the report’s methodology
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The £52trillion figure cited in the report was not calculated by Oxfam’s authors but originated from two Indian economists based in Delhi, Utsa Patnaik and her husband Prabhat – both of whom describe themselves as Marxists.
The couple had previously estimated in 2018 that Britain had drained India of approximately £36.5trillion between 1765 and 1938.
An Oxfam spokesman said: “Oxfam believes that understanding colonialism and its lasting impacts is crucial to understanding the deeply unequal world we live in today, and what we need to do to end poverty and inequality.”
“While colonialism is not the sole driver of inequality, it is a crucial factor that must be addressed to create a more equitable future for all.”