Windrush commissioner pledges to fight for justice for marginalised groups
At a launch event on Wednesday, Clive Foster will tell the immigration minister, Seema Malhotra, that he does not intend to perform a public relations role for the government.
'Many people were broken by the betrayal, hurt and displacement caused by a scandal that has left a stain on the social conscience of the nation,' he will say, adding that he will challenge officials until they complete 'unfinished work' and fulfil their commitments to those affected.
Some commentators have cast Foster's new role as a 'Dettol commissioner', responsible for cleaning up the government's mess. Responding to this scepticism, Foster will tell an audience of members of the Windrush generation at Hackney town hall that his job will be 'to confront uncomfortable realities, not conceal them'.
'If I am to be seen as a Dettol commissioner, as some have called me, let it be in the spirit of healing and protection, not sanitising the truth,' he will say. 'Moral outrage still burns within me for people who had the legal and moral right to be here but were denied that.'
Foster, a pastor from Nottingham, was named by the Home Office as Windrush commissioner in June and starts work this week. His appointment fulfils a promise made by the former home secretary Priti Patel to implement a series of recommendations designed to introduce comprehensive reform of the Home Office in the wake of the Windrush scandal, in which thousands of people, many of them from the Caribbean, were wrongly classified as immigration offenders despite having spent most of their lives in the UK.
Foster plans to widen his role to address wider injustices, in addition to his core responsibility as 'a champion of the Windrush generation's legacy, ensuring this generation is remembered for their contribution – not just for a scandal'.
He will say: 'What began as a fight for justice for the Windrush generation has become a mirror reflecting the broader struggles faced by Black Britons and other marginalised communities. People have come forward not only with experiences of immigration injustice but with experiences of discrimination in housing, education, employment and policing. I want to ensure these voices are heard in the places where change happens.'
A number of applicants to the Windrush compensation scheme have seen their applications rejected because they had applied under the misapprehension that the scheme would offer compensation not just to people wrongly labelled as immigration offenders but also to those who had experienced racist treatment in the course of their working lives or during their education in the UK.
Applicants often viewed the compensation scheme as an 'opening to express the longstanding hurt and pain they feel about discrimination', Foster told the Guardian. 'They want to express how discrimination and structural racism has affected them over the years. We need to create a space for those voices to be heard and ensure that the right action is taken.'
Foster noted that there remained 'suspicion and apprehension' towards the Home Office among the Windrush generation and their descendants, and said some people were still wary about coming forward to apply for citizenship documentation.
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More than 8,000 people have received documentation from the Home Office confirming that they are living in the country legally. About £112m has been paid out across 3,334 compensation claims, in recognition of the extent to which people's lives were upturned by the Home Office's decision to categorise those affected as illegal immigrants.
Some of those affected by the Home Office's mistakes were wrongly deported, others were detained, lost their jobs and homes or were denied access to pensions and free NHS treatment. The compensation scheme has been repeatedly criticised for being slow to resolve claims, and at least 64 people have died after submitting claims for compensation.
Foster's parents moved from Jamaica to the UK in 1959. His mother worked as a nurse for the NHS and his father worked in factories and mines. 'This is personal for me,' he will say.
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