PM pledges sorrow for slavery's legacy, dismisses reparations demand

Last updated: October 31, 2026 | 23:50

Britain's Prime Minister Andy Burnham chairs a meeting of the National Economic Council in Glasgow on October 30, 2026, that focuses on driving growth in every region of the United Kingdom. AFP

London: Prime Minister Andy Burnham said Saturday he was "open" to the UK issuing a formal apology for its role in the transatlantic slave trade, but ruled out financial reparations.

Writing in The Guardian days before attending a Commonwealth leaders summit in the Caribbean, and as King Charles III tours the region, the British premier argued that "we need to face up to the past".

With London under pressure to formally apologise for its pivotal part in the trade and compensate Caribbean nations, he pledged to have "difficult conversations to safeguard the Commonwealth for the future".

Burnham said he wanted to "express my sorrow and regret for the pain and suffering of so many millions and to recognise…