Windrush Scandal

The British government recently apologised for the Windrush Scandal of 2018- for the wrongful detention and mistreatment of the Windrush generation.

About the Scandal

In 2018, a political scandal arose in the UK when the Home Office wrongfully detained and denied the legal rights to a certain category of people. Most of these people were born as British subjects in Caribbean countries and arrived in the UK before 1973. It led to loss of jobs, homes, lack of access to medical care, benefits, legal relief, etc.

Windrush Generation

During the post-World War II period, UK was facing large shortages in the labour market. In order to address this, the government had passed the British Nationality Act of 1948 which gave citizenship (of UK and colonies) and also the right of entry and settlement in UK to the people in the colonies. This led to mass immigration from African-Caribbean region into the UK. They are called the Windrush Generation- in reference to the ship that transported then to UK.

Hostile Environment Policy

The Hostile Environment Policy was introduced in 2012 by former British Prime Minister Theresa May. It was intended to create a ‘hostile environment’ in UK for illegal immigrants. Critics linked the policy to the Windrush scandal for its effect on the Windrush generation and other Commonwealth citizens.