UK commits to slavery 'historical harms' talks with Commonwealth as Miliband insists taxpayers won't pay a 'penny more'
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 and Queen Camilla host Commonwealth Heads of State and their partners at an official dinner in Antigua and Barbuda, as Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband ruled out reparations entirely, insisting the government's structured dialogue would conclude within a year.The Queen enjoying a steel pan band performance, as Ed Miliband insisted a £40 million green energy package for Caribbean Commonwealth nations was entirely unrelated to any slavery apology process.Tables set for an official Commonwealth Heads of Government dinner in Antigua; Andy Burnham announced a £40 million green energy package for Caribbean nations at the summit, though Ed Miliband insisted it was unrelated to any apology process.
Britain has formally agreed to enter a "structured, time-bound, inclusive and good-faith dialogue" with Commonwealth nations over the slave trade, with talks potentially yielding a formal apology ahead of the UK's hosting of the G20 in Manchester next November. Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband, who all but confirmed an apology is coming, insisted the process would not cost the British taxpayer "a penny more" — even as a £40 million aid package for Caribbean nations was confirmed. Burnham repeatedly refused to give the same guarantee when pressed on Monday, exposing a clear rift in the government's messaging.
Miliband attacked Tony Blair's 2006 "sorry, not sorry" approach, saying No 10 subsequently "walked back" Blair's expressions of sorrow.
King Charles pointedly avoided an apology in his CHOGM speech, insisting 'we cannot change the past' and highlighting the Royal Navy's contribution to abolishing the slave trade.
Britain's national debt stands at £3 trillion while Burnham pledges £40 million to Caribbean nations, fuelling anger over the government's priorities.
