The Church of England has reaffirmed its commitment to spending £100 million (€117 million) on projects linked to the historical transatlantic slave trade, describing the payouts as a “moral imperative” for a responsible Christian investor.
The Church Commissioners for England, which manages the Church’s endowment fund, established the programme following research into predecessor bodies such as Queen Anne’s Bounty.
They said they are “outraged” by its links to the transatlantic slave trade, which Britain abolished in 1807, and its alleged ongoing effects on people today.
The £100 million commitment, spread over nine years from 2023, funds impact investments, grants, research and engagement aimed at communities affected by enslavement.
A spokesperson for the Commissioners stated: “The Church Commissioners, as a 320-year-old Christian in-perpetuity endowment fund, has committed £100 million to set up a new investment fund to support healing, justice and repair.”
They added that this action “re-emphasises our moral imperative as a Christian, responsible investor to address the issue”.
The decision has drawn sustained criticism.
Conservative MPs and peers have called the fund a “legally dubious vanity project”, arguing the money should instead support struggling parishes facing closures and maintenance backlogs.
Think tank Policy Exchange described the plans as “poorly justified [and] historically uninformed”.
Some parishioners and commentators question prioritising overseas or historical redress while domestic churches struggle financially.
The Church has maintained the fund does not come directly from parish budgets but from the broader endowment.
Plans initially discussed scaling the effort towards a £1 billion (€1.17 billion) impact through co-investment, though the core £100 million commitment remains in place.
The move continues a pattern of institutional gestures on historical issues.
Since the early 2000s, Western governments, churches, corporations and cultural bodies have issued a steady stream of public apologies, financial commitments and symbolic reparations for events ranging from the transatlantic slave trade and colonialism to indigenous residential schools, wartime internments and other episodes from centuries past.
Examples include Tony Blair’s 2007 statement on the slave trade, multiple papal apologies, corporate funds established by banks and insurers with historical ties to slavery, and national truth-and-reconciliation processes in Canada, Australia and elsewhere.
Critics argue these actions often serve contemporary reputational or political purposes more than historical reckoning, frequently occurring amid domestic institutional pressures such as declining attendance or public funding debates, while diverting focus and resources from present-day challenges.
