Miliband says slavery apology will not cost British taxpayers
Ed Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, has insisted that a formal apology for Britain’s role in the transatlantic slave trade would not mean higher costs for taxpayers, and accused past governments of a “sweep it under the carpet” attitude. “Is it weak to do this? I think it’s the opposite of weak,” he told the BBC. An apology may come around the Manchester G20 summit in November 2027.
The King told Commonwealth leaders in Antigua that “character and courage can combine to overcome the most monstrous injustice”, citing the Royal Navy’s “leading role” in ending the trade, but did not apologise. Mr Miliband described Tony Blair’s 2007 expression of “deep sorrow and regret” as “sorry not sorry”. The prime minister has ruled out reparations, though critics quoted by the Daily Express say his £40m aid offer risks “reparations by stealth”. Justin Welby, the former Archbishop of Canterbury, writes in The Independent that taxpayer-funded reparations would be a “moral evil”.