The prime minister of Antigua and Barbuda has insisted Andy Burnham should agree to pay reparations over the UK’s role in the transatlantic slave trade , urging him to go further than an apology.

Gaston Browne warned there could be a repeat of the past “atrocities” in the future if reparations are not paid and said he believes Antigua’s next head of state should be Antiguan, rather than a British monarch.

It comes as King Charles visits the Caribbean islands ahead of the opening of a Commonwealth summit on Tuesday, which is expected to be dominated by talks about the issue of slavery .

King Charles will open a Commonwealth summit on Tuesday (Reuters)

Mr Burnham has signalled he would be open to exploring the possibility of a formal apology over the UK’s role in the slave trade, but has shut down any suggestion that reparations will be paid.

But speaking to ITV News, Mr Browne said: “I understand the politics in the UK, in which it may be a difficult proposition for him to agree to any form of…