'Fills my heart with horror': King Charles calls the slave trade shameful but stops short of an apology in Antigua
Andy Burnham fell while playing cricket at the Commonwealth summit in Antigua, where he has ruled out reparations but launched structured talks on a formal slavery apology.King Charles III, whose remarks drew no commitment to reparations, with Buckingham Palace insisting he would not be responsible for delivering any apology.King Charles III at Nelson's Dockyard, Antigua and Barbuda, where he learned about efforts to protect the islands' natural and built heritage, as Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband and former Prime Minister Gordon Brown joined efforts to build towards a formal slavery apology.Andy Burnham, Prime Minister, met King Charles at the Commonwealth Business Forum at the Sticky Wicket, as former Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby branded the £40m taxpayer-funded allocation for Caribbean green energy and infrastructure a 'moral evil'.On board HMS Wellington, Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said Britain should "stop apologising" for its role in the slave trade, as Burnham warned a formal UK apology is now expected next year when Britain holds the G20 presidency.Queen Camilla met women advocating for others across the Commonwealth, including survivors of abuse, as Andy Burnham separately opened formal slavery apology talks at the Antigua summit.
King Charles told Commonwealth leaders at the CHOGM summit in Antigua that the transatlantic slave trade "fills my heart with horror and my soul with the most profound personal sorrow" — but pointedly avoided any formal apology, insisting "we cannot change the past." Prime Minister Andy Burnham, also attending the summit, has opened the door to discussions about a slavery apology while ruling out direct reparations, and announced £40 million for Caribbean infrastructure over three years.
Burnham rejected claims his apology overtures made things "more difficult" for the King, telling ITV News: "We are reaching out and listening."
The King said his commitment is growing to "address the wrongs of the past with action for the future," stopping short of the formal apology Caribbean leaders and protesters have demanded.
Charles was reportedly caught between Burnham's apology signals and Caribbean campaigners demanding full reparations, with protesters having stalked his tour of the Bahamas, Antigua and Guyana.
