CARICOM chair Philip J. Pierre welcomes the apology offer but says an apology without repair is incomplete
Philip J. PierrePrime Minister of Saint Lucia and Chair of the Caribbean Community
Pierre welcomes Burnham's openness to a formal apology and his offer of dialogue, but says CARICOM does not accept that reparations are not the right answer.
Responding to
Britain should not pay financial reparations for the transatlantic slave trade because British people today cannot be held liable for historical wrongs in which they played no personal part.
“An apology is an essential first step, and we would receive a formal apology from the British state as a moment of historic importance. But an apology without repair is incomplete.”
Official statement
Where this statement fits
Andy Burnham says he is open to a formal UK apology for slavery and rules out reparations; Conservative and Reform UK leaders object, and CARICOM calls for repair
In a Guardian article published on October 30, 2026, UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham expressed his "sorrow and regret" for the suffering caused by the transatlantic slave trade, offered a "structured dialogue" with those affected and said he was open to calls for a formal apology on behalf of the British state. He wrote that he did not believe financial reparations were the right answer and proposed a drive to ease debt costs for the poorest countries. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch and Reform UK's Nigel Farage and Suella Braverman said Britain should not apologise, and Badenoch argued that an apology would be used to seek money. The chair of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), Saint Lucia Prime Minister Philip J. Pierre, welcomed the offer of dialogue but rejected Burnham's position on reparations. On November 2, Burnham's spokesperson said his expression of sorrow and regret was "distinct from a formal apology".
Source and context
Official statement
About this source
Statement by CARICOM's chair responding to Burnham's Guardian article: it welcomes his openness to a formal apology and his offer of a structured dialogue, rejects his position on reparations and comments on the proposed debt initiative.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
Pierre says no British prime minister has gone this far before and that CARICOM is "ready to engage", but that it does not accept that reparations are "not the right answer" or that responsibility ends because people in Britain today played no personal part.
After the quotation
The statement asks that every element of CARICOM's Ten-Point Plan for Reparatory Justice be part of the dialogue, says the UK debt initiative will be examined seriously, and says debt relief "cannot be offered as a substitute for reparatory justice".
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The reference point is Andy Burnham's position, set out on October 30, 2026, that he is open to calls for a formal apology on behalf of the British state for the transatlantic slave trade while ruling out financial reparations. Pierre welcomes the openness to a formal apology but rejects the ruling out of reparations, so his response supports one part of the position and opposes the other.
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- People and groups discussed
- Andy Burnham
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The Dispute Index. "CARICOM chair Philip J. Pierre welcomes the apology offer but says an apology without repair is incomplete". First published: 2026-11-03. Last updated: 2026-11-03. https://disputeindex.com/events/7824-pierre-welcomes-burnham-s-openness-to-a-formal