UK Commonwealth debt relief and slavery apology 2026
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UK minister Miliband says slavery apology will not cost taxpayers
Miliband said over three million people were shipped with the British state's complicity over a couple of centuries and hundreds of thousands of them died.
Miliband said he asked to be provided with a historical digest of the UK's involvement in the slave trade.
Miliband made these remarks on the BBC's Newscast podcast.
“On the second day as my time as foreign secretary, I was told, 'look, one of your tasks is CHOGM 2024, which happened in Samoa, didn't go well.' To use sort of diplomatic speak, it ended up in a sort of punch up, a sort of verbal punch up about this whole issue.”
King calls slave trade a 'shameful chapter' in Commonwealth address
King Charles described the transatlantic slave trade as a 'shameful chapter of history' during his Commonwealth address.
The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (Chogm) is taking place in Antigua and Barbuda.
King Charles said the trade in enslaved persons 'still casts a shadow' over the Commonwealth.
“The more I have furthered my own understanding of the issues, through listening, learning and looking, the more committed I have become to finding ways for us to work in modern partnership to address the wrongs of the past with action for the future.”
UK PM plans debt re-set for Commonwealth nations as slavery apology talks begin
The UK will not pay financial reparations for the slave trade, according to the PM.
No 10 said the UK would lead two new task forces, one focused on critical mineral assets and vulnerabilities in supply chains, and the other aimed at boosting trade and investment.
Burnham wrote an article in the Guardian arguing that by sticking heads in the sand, the UK has damaged the ability of the Commonwealth to function.
“For years, those members of the Commonwealth affected by the slave trade have asked for an honest conversation about the legacies of slavery. By sticking our heads in the sand, we have damaged the ability of the Commonwealth to function,”