Baroness Benjamin (LD)

My Lords, a new report by Justice, a law reform charity, and King’s College London has found that survivors of the Home Office Windrush scandal who seek compensation should receive the same free legal support given to victims of the Post Office and infected blood scandals. The report points out that the Government have set up a series of compensation schemes in response to all three state injustices, yet Windrush victims have been denied free legal help with their claims. The Home Office, which runs the Windrush compensation scheme, has argued that the process is more straightforward than others and says it was designed to be accessible without free legal support. But the report found that the Windrush scheme is just as complicated as the others, involving assessments of historic laws, facts and evidence that are complex even for lawyers and judges. Recalling precise dates and sequences of events in the distant past can also prove challenging, particularly for very elderly claimants. Also, victims suffering from severe trauma may find it all too painful to engage with the scheme. Lawyers for Windrush claimants have described the process as torturous, blaming a culture of disbelief among Home Office staff for delays and unreasonable refusals. Post Office claimants have the option of taking a fixed compensation payment between £75,000 and £600,000 at the start of the process, allowing them to avoid the stress of providing detailed evidence to demonstrate their losses. But there is no equivalent option available to Windrush victims, who have to demonstrate their losses through a lengthy and complex claims process, with no funding provided for any expert evidence that may be needed. Windrush victims also find themselves at a disadvantage if they wish to challenge the compensation order, as the scheme lacks an independent appeals process, unlike the infected blood and Post Office schemes. There is no justification for treating Windrush claimants differently from other scandal victims. If the Prime Minister is serious about righting this historic injustice, he must level the playing field and give them the legal support they need and deserve. Yes, a Windrush commissioner has been appointed. But to improve fairness and accountability, the report calls for the provision of funded legal advice and the creation of an independent expert appeals body with the power to make binding compensation awards for the Windrush scheme. Given this new evidence for change, will the Government act on the findings of the Justice and King’s College London report to deliver a fairer and more accessible compensation scheme for the Windrush victims and survivors? The Windrush generation answered the call to come and rebuild Britain after the war. Surely the Government should now answer their call for justice and to restore trust. I look forward to the Minister’s response.