The Windrush compensation scheme, designed to address a grave injustice, has instead become a bureaucratic nightmare that needs a significant overhaul, MPs were told on Monday. The independent Windrush commissioner, Clive Foster, informed the public accounts committee that survivors should receive legal support to navigate the claims process, bringing it in line with compensation programs for Post Office Horizon and infected blood scandal victims.
Foster highlighted that nearly six in 10 applications result in no payout, calling the process "exhausting and painful" for claimants. "Survivors of the Home Office Windrush scandal have already fought the state once. They deserve a scheme that works for them, not one that asks them to prove their suffering all over again," he said. He argued that advocates cannot replace lawyers in challenging flawed decisions or advising on causation and loss, and that funded legal support is essential for fairness.
The scheme, launched in 2019 after thousands of Windrush-era residents were misclassified as illegal immigrants, has paid out about £127m to 3,764 claimants. Despite improvements, more than 50 people have died after submitting claims but before receiving compensation. Foster called the Home Office's role in managing compensation for its own mistakes "misguided," noting that officials designing future schemes should avoid handing management to those responsible for the original problem.
The committee also heard from Alan Bates, who campaigns for justice for post office operators affected by the Horizon IT scandal, where over 900 were wrongly prosecuted between 1999 and 2015. A Home Office spokesperson said the home secretary is "determined to put right the appalling injustices," promising greater compensation and faster processing.