Gov’t Committed to Safeguarding the Windrush Generation’s Rights

Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Senator the Hon. Kamina Johnson Smith, says the Government remains committed to ensuring that the rights of members of the Windrush generation and their descendants are protected.

The Windrush generation were those persons who arrived in the United Kingdom (UK) from Caribbean countries between 1948 and 1973, many of whom took up jobs in areas affected by Britain’s post-war labour shortage.

Speaking on the virtual discussion forum ‘Let’s Connect with Ambassador Marks’, on Thursday (June 22), Senator Johnson Smith advised that State Minister in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade, Hon. Alando Terrelonge, is in the UK celebrating Windrush Day and the 75th anniversary of the Windrush.

“We know that there was the Windrush Scandal not so long ago and that there have been efforts to ensure that compensation is provided to the Windrush and to their descendants, and that there have been issues with the scheme. The Government of Jamaica is very much strong in our advocacy for the addressing of these issues,” she informed.

In 2019, the British government established a scheme to compensate members of the Windrush generation who were unable to prove their right to live in the United Kingdom.

She said a “great deal” of compensation has been paid to more than 3,000 persons of Jamaican heritage, while citizenship has been regularised for many others.

The Minister noted that the cap for compensation has been lifted as also the timeline.

“The fear that people had that there would be a window which they might miss has also been removed. This is something we continue to monitor through the High Commission in London as well as from headquarters, and we continue to engage not only with the British government but with the special representative, Professor [Martin] Levermore, who is a Jamaican,” she shared.

The name Windrush was derived from the ‘HMT Empire Windrush’ ship which brought one of the first large groups of Caribbean people to the UK in 1948.

“It’s arrival at the Tilbury Docks in the UK and the incredible history and legacy that our people have created in their contributions to post-war reconstruction in Britain is being recognised positively, and it’s very important for us,” Minister Johnson Smith said.