Kemi Badenoch Slams UK Government Over Abstinence to Vote for Slavery Reparations 

Summary: UK Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch criticised the UK government for abstaining from a UN vote on slavery reparations, warning it could make British taxpayers bear trillions in costs.

Kemi Badenoch, leader of the UK Conservative Party, has criticised the British government for abstaining from a United Nations vote on slavery reparations. She warned against any move that could make UK taxpayers bear the financial burden.

The United Nations General Assembly recently adopted a resolution, backed by 123 countries, which described the transatlantic slave trade as one of the gravest crimes against humanity and called for reparations from former colonial powers. Ghana played a leading role in securing the motion. This marked a diplomatic breakthrough and a significant step toward acknowledging historical injustices against Africans.

In her criticism, Kemi said Britain should have voted against the resolution, noting it could demand trillions from British taxpayers and questioning the Labour government’s decision to abstain. On social media platform X, she wrote: 

“Russia, China, and Iran vote with others to demand trillions in reparations from UK taxpayers and the Labour government abstain! Why didn’t Starmer’s representative vote against this? Ignorance or cowardice?” She added: “We shouldn’t be paying for a crime we helped eradicate and still fight today.”

The resolution urges nations to engage in structured dialogue and take concrete steps to address the enduring social, economic, and cultural consequences of slavery and the transatlantic slave trade. While 123 countries supported the motion, the United States, Argentina, and Israel voted against it, and 52 countries including major European powers such as France, Germany, Belgium, Hungary, and Cyprus chose to abstain.

Titled “Declaration of the Trafficking of Enslaved Africans and Racialised Chattel Enslavement of Africans as the Gravest Crime Against Humanity,” the resolution is also part of the African Union’s Decade of Action on Reparations and African Heritage (2026–2036). 

It represents one of the most comprehensive UN efforts to formally address the legacy of the transatlantic slave trade, even as reactions like Kemi’s highlight deep divisions among global leaders over the issue of reparations.