London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Aug 30, 2026

Windrush survivors cry out for long-overdue compensation from UK

Windrush survivors cry out for long-overdue compensation from UK

Survivors of the UK’s Windrush scandal, which saw thousands of UK residents-most of whom were originally from the Caribbean-wrongly classed as illegal immigrants say they will continue to fight for compensation from the UK.

As a result of the scandal, thousands of afro-Caribbean people and others were wrongly being denied healthcare, housing or the right to work, including being held detained or deported by immigration officials.

Persons were denied access to social services


Some persons were granted indefinite leave to remain in 1971, but thousands were children who had traveled on their parents' passports.

Due to this, many of the children were unable to prove they had the right to live in the UK when "hostile environment" immigration policies - demanding documentation be shown - began in 2012.

In a BBC report, one survivor of the Windrush scandal has said he and others will continue to fight for compensation, as MPs call for the Home Office to be stripped of running the payment scheme.

Mr Samuels was eight when he moved from Jamaica to the UK in 1964, after his parents came to "rebuild Britain", he said. He told BBC Breakfast he had been shocked to receive letters telling him he could no longer work and he had to leave.

"After 55 years in the UK, working and doing positive good, then the Home Office letter [arrived] telling me I'm an illegal immigrant and giving me six weeks to leave the country", he said.

Johnny Samuels suggested the Home Office could be waiting for survivors to die before they were compensated as most of whom applied had yet to get a penny, after some four years since the scandal emerged, a Home Affairs Committee report said.


Ordered to leave the UK


The "embarrassment" of being ordered to leave the country while he was at work is a "stigma [that] doesn't go away" he said, adding that colleagues believed he was an illegal immigrant.

Johnny Samuels suggested the Home Office could be waiting for survivors to die before they were compensated as most of whom applied had yet to get a penny, after some four years since the scandal emerged, a Home Affairs Committee report said.

Mr Samuels said he was "still in limbo" when it came to receiving compensation, adding: "It really makes you wonder, is this carrot real, is it going to happen before we're put into the grave, and I think that sometimes that is what the Home Office is waiting for."

"Justice delayed is not going to be justice denied" Samuels further said, adding that Windrush survivor would "keeping fighting until our last breath", even if this meant marching in the streets.

On Monday, September 7, 2020, during an interview with 284 Media, then Governor of the Virgin Islands, Augustus J. U. Jaspert said paying reparations to the Virgin Islands for acts of slavery and the slave trade is not the position of the UK at the moment while calling for relics of slavery to be preserved in the Territory.


No reparations for VI - Ex-Governor Jaspert


The struggles of the Windrush survivors comes as the UK has also denied paying perorations to the descendants of slaves in places like the Virgin Islands.

On Monday, September 7, 2020, during an interview with 284 Media, then Governor of the Virgin Islands, Augustus J. U. Jaspert said paying reparations to the Virgin Islands for acts of slavery and the slave trade is not the position of the UK at the moment while calling for relics of slavery to be preserved in the Territory.

His statements, deemed insensitive and even racist by some, infuriated many in the Virgin Islands. Some commentators condemned the remarks and even called for an apology.

While the UK has not paid reparation to the descendants and victims of slaves, up until 2015 the UK paid reparations to the owners of slaves after the abolition of slavery.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
UK Officials Highlight 80 Years of Diplomatic Relations With Philippines
Heavy Rain Disrupts Parts of England After Weeks of Extreme Summer Heat
More Than 200 Extra Police Officers Deployed Across Cleveland After Violent Incidents
Burnham Meets Northern Ireland Leaders for Talks on Economy and Youth Employment
Burnham to Abstain From UK Assisted Dying Vote
NHS Leaders Warn of Severe Financial and Staffing Pressures Ahead of Autumn
UK Treasury Prepares October Budget as Defense and Public Spending Pressures Mount
Scottish Government Publishes Draft Bill for Second Independence Referendum
Royal Navy Tracks Russian Warships and Sanctioned Vessels in 72-Hour Operation
UK and Ukraine Agree AI-Focused Defense Technology Partnership
US Reportedly Weighs Falkland Islands Policy Shift to Pressure UK Over NATO Spending
UK Government Mobilizes Emergency Aid as British Nationals Remain Missing After Nepal Floods
UK Hospitality Industry Reports Stronger Summer Trading but Seeks Tax Relief
Reform UK Proposes £30 Tax Credit for Long HMRC Helpline Waits
Labour Debates Caps on Political Donations Ahead of Future Elections
England Accelerates Housing and Planning Reforms Amid Affordability Crisis
NHS Expands Walk-In Community Health Centers to 40 Locations
UK Regulators Expect Meta to Apply Stronger Child Safety Standards Globally
UK Groups Demand Faster Transport Decarbonization After Extreme Summer Weather
UK Launches 10,000 Work Experience Placements as Youth Unemployment Concerns Rise
UK Government Faces Difficult Autumn Budget Choices Over Defense, Spending and Taxes
UK Government Rejects Calls to Slow AI Data Center Expansion
IMF Raises UK Growth Forecast to 1% Despite Global Supply Chain Risks
UK Unsecured Loan Defaults Reach Highest Level Since 2009
UK Energy Price Cap to Rise 4% to Three-Year High of £1,723
More Than 30 Britons Reported Missing After Deadly Nepal-Tibet Floods
Royal Navy Tracks Russian Warships and Sanctioned Vessels in 72-Hour Operation
Police Intensify Investigation Into Organised Crime-Linked Violence in Middlesbrough
UK Small Businesses Face Continued Revenue and Tax Pressures, Federation Says
M&G Real Estate Buys West Sussex Affordable Housing Portfolio for £29 Million
Royal Navy Warship HMS Tamar Visits Cambodia for Regional Security Engagement
UK Government Brings Forward Benefit Payments Ahead of August Bank Holiday
Four Men Plead Guilty to Arson Attack on Jewish Community Ambulances in North London
Ofgem Raises Great Britain’s Household Energy Price Cap by Four Percent From October
UK Government Rejects Green Party Call for Artificial Intelligence Datacentre Moratorium
Millions of UK Benefit Recipients Receive Payments Early Ahead of August Bank Holiday
UK Prime Minister Meets Northern Ireland Leaders in Belfast Over Budget Crisis
Crypto Tax Gains Reach One Point Three Eight Billion Pounds Among UK Investors, HMRC Data Shows
UK Corporate Confidence Rises to Highest Level Since March, Lloyds Survey Shows
Mike Ashley Attacks UK Government Business Rates and Cost-of-Living Policies
Scottish Universities Face Two Hundred Million Pound Annual Funding Gap, Report Warns
Entertainment Figures Urge UK Government to Protect People From AI Voice Cloning
Manchester Airports Group Confirms Customer Data Breached in Cyberattack
Seven Charged Over Vandalism at Donald Trump’s Turnberry Golf Resort in Scotland
Nearly 23,000 UK Households Expected to Move Home on Busiest Day of 2026
UK Benefit Payments to Arrive Early Ahead of August Bank Holiday
Reform UK Pledges to Replace GDPR and Cut Tax Administration Red Tape
Andy Burnham Launches Work Experience Plan for One Million Young People Outside Education or Work
Andy Burnham Faces Labour Backlash After Dropping Support for Political Donations Cap
Andy Burnham Announces UK-Wide Summit With Leaders of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland
×