Bank, Church of England apologise for historic slavery ties

June 19, 2020
London: The UK’s central bank and the Church of England have both apologised for the role that some of their senior figures played in the slave trade.

Former Bank of England governors and directors profited from slavery, as did a bishop and dozens of other clergymen, a BBC report said on Friday.

In 2006, the Church voted to apologise to the descendants of victims of the slave trade.

Its missionary arm, the Society for the Propagation of the Christian Religion in Foreign Parts (SPG), inherited three sugar estates in the Caribbean.

The plantation was run for the Church by professional planters, but its profits went to the missionary group.

Slaves working on the estate were branded on their chests with the word “society”.

“While we recognise the leading role clergy and active members of the Church of England played in securing the abolition of slavery, it is a source of shame that others within the Church actively perpetrated slavery and profited from it,” a Church spokeswoman said.

“Slavery and exploitation have no place in society.”

Meanwhile, a database compiled by University College London shows that at least 11 former Bank governors and 16 early directors either benefitted from those payments or had links to the slave trade.

“There can be no doubt that the 18th and 19th Century slave trade was an unacceptable part of English history,” the BBC quoted a Bank spokeswoman as saying.

“As an institution, the Bank of England was never itself directly involved in the slave trade, but is aware of some inexcusable connections involving former governors and directors and apologises for them.”

Pressure has been growing on companies around the world to address links to slavery and tackle racial inequality following the death of George Floyd in the US last month while in police custody.

On Wednesday, UK pub chain Greene King and insurance market Lloyd’s of London also apologised for their historical links to the slave trade. IANS