Starmer rejects calls for slavery reparation talks

Sir Keir Starmer has said helium wants to absorption connected the aboriginal of the Commonwealth, aft ruling retired compensation for the UK's humanities relation successful the enslaved trade.

All 3 candidates to go the adjacent caput of the 56-nation organisation person called for reparations for countries that were affected by slavery.

A radical of Caribbean nations has indicated it volition propulsion for the contented to beryllium discussed astatine a acme of the bloc's leaders successful Samoa this week.

But the UK premier curate said helium wanted to code "current future-facing challenges" alternatively than "spend a batch of clip connected the past".

Sir Keir's authorities has ruled retired making slavery reparations, continuing a longstanding British stance connected the subject.

Downing Street has besides said Sir Keir volition not beryllium apologising for Britain's relation successful the transatlantic enslaved trade, and reparations volition not beryllium connected the acme agenda.

Speaking to reporters connected his mode to Samoa, the Labour person said determination was "no question" that slavery was "abhorrent".

But helium added that helium wanted to absorption connected the challenges that Commonwealth countries were "facing close now" alternatively than what "will extremity up being very, precise agelong endless discussions astir reparations connected the past".

"This is astir stance really, looking guardant alternatively than looking backwards," helium said, suggesting that Commonwealth countries themselves were much funny successful talking astir clime finance.

The Atlantic enslaved commercialized saw millions of Africans enslaved and forced to work, particularly connected plantations successful the Caribbean and the Americas, for centuries from astir 1500.

The British authorities and the monarchy were salient participants successful the trade, alongside different European nations.

The UK besides played a cardinal relation successful ending the commercialized done Parliament's transition of a instrumentality to abolish slavery successful 1833.

Reparations are broadly recognised arsenic compensation for thing that was deemed incorrect oregon unfair, and tin instrumentality galore forms.

In the run-up to this week's summit, 5 MPs from Starmer's Labour Party person been pressing for the contented of slavery reparations to beryllium discussed.

One of them, Clapham and Brixton Hill MP Bell Ribeiro-Addy, has said it would beryllium “wrong" not to attack the contented astatine the summit.