‘We owe nothing’: Jamaican judge slammed for ‘silly’ claim that Britain owes £18.8TRILLION – at least – in reparations for its role in the slave trade to reflect ‘the enormity of the damage caused’

• Patrick Robinson said politicians were burying their heads in the sand over issue

Britain owes almost £19trillion in reparations for its role in the international slave trade, and even that might be an ‘underestimation’, a leading international judge has claimed. 

Patrick Robinson, who sits in International Criminal Court, claimed that countries behind the centuries of atrocities were ‘obliged to pay’ and accused politicians like Rishi Sunak of burying their heads in the sand.

He spoke after an academic report in June alleged that 31 former slaveholding states – which also include the United States and Spain – owed $100trillion – $131trillion between them.

But the astonishing sum has raised eyebrows at the maths involved and where those behind the push for compensation expect the cash to come from. 

Tory former minister Jacob Rees-Mogg said: ‘It is simply silly. We owe nothing and civilised the world by ending the slave trade.’

Speaking to Guardian, Mr Robinson did not rule out former colonial states trying to  take legal action, but suggested a diplomatic solution was more likely.

Patrick Robinson, who sits in International Criminal Court, claimed that countries behind the centuries of atrocities were ‘obliged to pay’ and accused politicians like Rishi Sunak of burying their heads in the sand.

He spoke after an academic report in June alleged that 31 former slaveholding states – which also include the United States and Spain – owed $100trillion – $131trillion between them.

‘These calculations are not over a period of five years or 10 years. They cover the entire duration of transatlantic chattel slavery, which means they cover hundreds of years,’ the judge, who presided over the trial of Serbian war criminal Slobodan Milosevic, said.

‘What is more, reparations have never been paid. So the calculations begin from day one of transatlantic chattel slavery, that is hundreds of years; and that alone explains the high figures.’ 

On a visit to London for Unesco’s Day for Remembering the Transatlantic Slave Trade and Abolition, he also told the BBC the figures ‘accurately reflect the enormity of the damage caused by slavery’.

He added: ‘It amazes me that countries could think, in this day and age, when the consequences of that practice are clear for everyone to see, that they can bury their heads in the sand, and it doesn’t concern them. It’s as though they are in a kind of la la land.’

Political commentator Emily Carver said: ‘Those who believe the government should pay reparations for slavery should have to explain where they want that money to come from. 

‘We already have the highest tax burden for decades, so the education budget? policing? NHS? transport? Didn’t think so.’

Mr Sunak has already today warned against efforts to ‘unpick our history’ as he dismissed a Labour MP’s demand for Britain to pay reparations over slavery and colonialism. 

He said his Government would instead be focussed on ‘making sure we have a society which is inclusive and tolerant of people from all backgrounds’. 

In 1833, when legislation was passed to abolish slavery within the then British Empire, it was agreed a compensation package of £20million for slave owners for their loss of ‘property’.

This was funded from one of the largest loans in history and represented around 40 per cent of the Treasury’s annual income at the time.

It is forecast the Treasury’s total income for 2023-24 will be around £1trillion, meaning the modern-day equivalent loan would be about £400billion.

Source: Read Full Article