Ten years is too long to wait to right the wrongs of the Windrush Scandal

Next year will be a decade since the country became aware that thousands of people who had settled in the UK in the wave of migration known as Windrush had been systemically treated as though they had no right to be in the UK and had been removed, deported, prevented from returning or denied employment and access to the rights of British citizens.

Although successive governments have acknowledged the scandal, justice for those affected continues to be delayed and too often denied.

In a letter sent this week, the signatories call for

• Citizenship The Government must restore the right of the Windrush Generation and their descendants to register as British citizens.  The British Nationality Act 1981 must be amended to enable those from former colonies who had a right to remain under section 1(2) of the Immigration Act 1971.
• Independent Oversight and Scrutiny The Home Office and the Windrush Commissioner must set up quarterly oversight meetings with an independent council to review the operation of the Windrush Schemes, monitor implementation, and publish progress. 
• Windrush Compensation Scheme The Windrush Compensation Scheme must be reformed with funded specialist legal representation for all claimants and implementing an initiative-taking programme to identify, support and compensate every eligible victim, including with the state pension.
• Independent Statutory Inquiry The Government should establish a full independent statutory inquiry into the causes, operation, administration and continuing consequences of the Windrush scandal.
• Eligibility The Windrush Taskforce must clarify the basis upon which eligibility for compensation is determined, particularly in relation to those prevented from returning to the UK through no fault of their own.

The letter was instigated by Leigh Day partner Jacqueline McKenzie, who has achieved compensation for hundreds of victims of the Windrush Scandal after they turned to her when their own efforts to achieve remediation through the Windrush Compensation Scheme were rebuffed; Martin Forde KC who was the independent advisor to the Windrush Scheme and Leigh Day’s Jerome Bond and campaigner Christopher Oliver.

Jacqueline McKenzie said:

“Almost a decade after the nation was rocked by the shocking revelations of the Windrush Scandal, too many members of the Windrush Generation, and their families, remain without justice. While the contributions of the Windrush Generation have rightly been recognised and celebrated, recognition has not been matched by effective redress or meaningful accountability for those impacted by the scandal.  

“This cannot continue, many victims have died while waiting for recognition and compensation for their claims. A decade after this stain on our nation became clear, we cannot wait any longer for action to make right the wrongs.”

Read a copy of the letter here.