EXCLUSIVE: The leader of Reform UK says the PM should be proud of the role Britain played in ending the slave trade.
Nigel Farage says Britain has already paid the price for the transatlantic slave trade (Image: Getty)
Nigel Farage has told Andy Burnham Britain has already paid the price for slavery after the Prime Minister said he was open to making a formal apology. The PM expressed his personal “sorrow and regret” on Friday for the suffering caused by the transatlantic slave trade and said he wanted to offer a structured dialogue with those affected.
Mr Burnham’s comments sparked fury among his political opponents. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage MP told the Daily Express: “Britain’s already paid the price for its role in the slave trade.
“We abolished the slave trade in 1807 and then spent vast sums of money stamping it out across the world. A bill that wasn’t settled until 2014.
“Instead of peddling grievance politics, the Prime Minister should be proud of the leading role Britain played in ending this barbaric practice.”
Restore Britain leader, Rupert Lowe MP, said: “If Burnham apologises over slavery, he’s even more pathetic than we ever imagined. Britain has nothing to apologise for, at all.
“We should be proud of our country’s achievements and utterly unapologetic about defending it. Those demanding apologies, reparations and god knows what else are deluding themselves. Quite frankly – he should tell the lot of them to sod off.”
Shadow Culture Secretary, Rebecca Paul, said it was right to acknowledge and remember the horror of the transatlantic slave trade, but Brits should be proud of the part the country played in ending it.
She added: “From 1808 the Royal Navy’s West Africa Squadron seized slave ships and freed around 150,000 Africans. And 17,000 of our sailors lost their lives in doing so.
“Britain led the way in ending this barbaric practice – facing down opposition from many other countries at the time -so we should be rightly proud of that.
“So by all means acknowledge what happened and never ever forget it – but do so honestly, recognising the full story.”
In keeping with the policy of his predecessors, Mr Burnham stopped short of offering any consideration of reparation payments.
The PM, writing in the Guardian newspaper, said: “Some have called for financial reparations for the slave trade. I do not believe that is the right answer.
“I do not think that British people today can be held liable for historical wrongs, however heinous, that happened in a different age under different laws and in which they played no personal part.”
He said he would instead seek to launch a drive on debt-servicing to help countries repay over a longer time period with better rates.
Caribbean nations have made renewed calls for Britain to apologise for its role in selling enslaved people for profit, and for reparations, as King Charles tours the region.