David R. Salmon | Kemi Badenoch is right

Kemi Badenoch is absolutely right. Ahead of this week’s Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, the UK Conservative Party leader and leader of the Opposition, shared some words of wisdom for her fellow Commonwealth counterparts.

She indicated that Britain has given enough apologies and the Commonwealth should look forward, “not endlessly backwards”. Specifically, she argued that Commonwealth nations have made the argument for reparations because “many of these countries are struggling with the same issues that we are struggling with. They’re not becoming richer. They don’t know what to do, so they want to ask Britain for more money”.

A crime so very long ago

In this regard, her historical analysis was spot on. Slavery was so long ago, in fact, that she is old enough to have had taxes deducted from her hard-earned salary to repay the loan taken out to provide compensation for slave owners. Let’s not forget that Britain only paid off this debt in 2015.

I sympathise with her. I can imagine how awkward it must be to know that her taxes footed this bill well into the 21st century. Funnily enough, it took the United Kingdom (UK) longer to repay this debt than what it incurred from two World Wars.

This development has created the unfortunate situation where Caribbean immigrants living in Britain were paying the bill for those who enslaved their ancestors. So, it is completely reasonable to suggest that slavery was so far in the distant past that it is entirely divorced from today’s reality.

A distracted Commonwealth

Another point she raised was that the Commonwealth is distracted. Again, Badenoch has hit the nail on its head. For those who may not know, the Commonwealth was established as an institution which allowed the British Empire to morph into a more respectable organisation. This institution has frequently been described as a ‘family’. And, as with many families, most are guided by the stern hand of a loving father.

To be fair, Britain has provided that steady hand. It is undisputable that the UK has been a leader in the advocacy for human dignity for centuries. As Ms Badenoch has repeatedly mentioned, Britain played a major role in ending the slave trade. They did it relatively quickly, too. It only took them about 200 or so years of profiting from this human-trafficking ring to act. It is incredible to learn about the sacrifice that the British made towards the endeavour.

This is the kind of sterling leadership that continues to be demonstrated by the UK in the Commonwealth to this day. In fact, even Andy Burnham, Britain’s current prime minister, can take a lesson or two from his predecessors, such as Labour leader Harold Wilson.

Famously, Wilson was extremely reticent about enacting sanctions against apartheid South Africa. It was Commonwealth leaders like former Jamaican Prime Minister Donald Sangster who embraced this family of nations and pressured the UK to take a firmer stance on the matter. So, nations like those in the Caribbean should definitely look up to Britain as a country known for its consistency and values.

Lessons from ‘beggar’ nations

Something else that should be mentioned is that Badenoch was very precise in her assessment that Commonwealth nations are only looking to the UK to snatch a portion of her vast wealth. These nations, might I add, include some of the world’s most indebted countries; I am sure the UK can relate to this.

Perhaps Ms Badenoch should take greater interest in the Caribbean. The region could provide a number of lessons for Britain. For example, Jamaica presents a very good example of how to enact sound fiscal management, something that her predecessor, Liz Truss, would have been wise to observe.

But alas, what can be learnt from pauperised countries, like Jamaica, which managed to halve its debt burden. After all, the UK is only dealing with the minor matter of managing increased interest rate payments incurred after years of excessive borrowing. It was only in September that the International Monetary Fund issued a warning that Britain should curb additional public spending and avoid unfunded handouts.

I am sure it would not be an inconvenience if Jamaica sent two of our former finance ministers to give Badenoch some advice. One of them might already be there in his capacity as deputy managing director of the Fund. But we in the Caribbean are a generous people. We could also send Dr Peter Phillips, too, as he can also provide some technical assistance on fiscal prudence. That should not be a problem.

A wake-up call

If there is one thing that her remarks shed light on, it is the absolute contempt that many politicians in Britain have for developing countries. Ms Badenoch’s comments should be a wake-up call for us humble citizens in the former colonies.

The truth is that, unless we create wealthier societies that people want to reside in and move to, we are only creating opportunities for learned individuals like Ms Badenoch to school us in history. Wouldn’t it be remarkable for countries within this region to develop income levels that rival that of the UK? That is certainly a development that I would want to see in my lifetime.

Lastly, for the Commonwealth to continue to remain relevant, as Ms Badenoch suggests, it has to focus and mobilise resources towards the goal of achieving a shared future. The organisation must promote the development of countries in this region and beyond. The Commonwealth is more than the UK and thus, we should broaden its scope beyond it simply existing as a platform for the UK to cosplay as a great nation.

David R. Salmon is Jamaica’s 2023 Rhodes Scholar and a PhD student in public policy at Oxford’s Blavatnik School of Government. His research examines economic diversification in small island developing states.