Mike Tapp | I want Windrush victims to receive justice

The Home Office Windrush scandal stands as one of the most shameful chapters in Britain’s recent history.

British citizens who had spent decades building their lives here, contributing to our communities and enriching our society, were treated as though they had no right to exist in their own home.

Today, we take significant steps to right those wrongs by transforming how we compensate those who suffered.

For too long, victims who challenged their compensation decisions faced agonising waits with nothing in their pockets. That ends now. Claimants can receive up to three-quarters of their expected final award while their review is completed.

We are also addressing a glaring gap in the scheme. Until today, victims could not claim for the direct financial impact of being unable to pay into workplace or personal pensions during years of being wrongly prevented from working.

People who should have been building their retirement security were instead fighting to prove they belonged in the country they called home. Both workplace and personal pension losses can now be compensated.

Some were forced to empty their retirement savings when they lost their jobs or could not access public services. These withdrawals will now also qualify for redress.

For our older and more vulnerable claimants, we are introducing a priority allocation system. Anyone aged 75 or over, or living with a serious health condition, will have their application prioritised. Time is not a luxury everyone has, and we must ensure every victim receives justice while they can still benefit from it.

I want all victims to receive justice, and I urge anyone who believes they suffered due to an inability to demonstrate their lawful status to submit a claim. We are funding community organisations to support people through their claims and tell their story, reducing stress and fear from the compensation process.

I thank the Windrush Commissioner Reverend Clive Foster for his recommendations and his ongoing efforts to deliver justice for victims. These changes are a positive first step, and work continues today to reconnect the government with the Windrush community, who play such a vital role in our society.

All improvements apply retrospectively, benefiting existing claimants as well as new applicants.

This is not simply about money, though proper financial redress matters enormously. It is about acknowledging the profound harm done to people who trusted this country and were betrayed by it. It is about ensuring that when we say "never again", we mean it.

The Windrush generation helped rebuild Britain after the war. They worked in our hospitals, drove our buses, and strengthened our communities. We owed them gratitude. Instead, they received suspicion and cruelty.

We cannot undo what was done. But we can ensure that every person affected receives the justice they deserve. That work continues today.

- Mike Tapp is Member of Parliament for Dover and Deal for the British Labour Party since July 2024. He is also Parliamentary Under-Secretary in the Home Office. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com