The Church of England established a £100 million Fund for Healing, Repair and Justice in 2023 to address the institution’s historical involvement in the transatlantic slave trade. The initiative followed years of research into the church’s endowment fund, which revealed connections to the South Sea Company—a major participant in the trafficking of enslaved Africans—and to individual slave traders and Church of England clergy who financed slave trading operations. Church leaders, including former Archbishop Justin Welby, had acknowledged the need for institutional reckoning on racism and slavery.
However, the fund has encountered significant resistance from Conservative politicians and commentators. Retired professor and Anglican priest Nigel Biggar emerged as a leading critic, characterizing the reparations effort as performative activism by elites. Conservative MP Katie Lam has coordinated parliamentary opposition, including a December letter from 27 MPs and peers questioning the fund’s legal standing. A sustained media campaign against the initiative has appeared across major publications including the Spectator, Daily Telegraph, Daily Mail, and Times.
The Guardian has reported that wealthy financier Sir Paul Marshall, co-founder of hedge fund Marshall Wace, has provided substantial backing to opponents of the fund through his media holdings, which include the Spectator magazine, GB News broadcaster, and UnHerd commentary website. Marshall has also funded various right-wing organizations and lobbying groups associated with Biggar. This concentrated media presence and financial support has effectively delayed the fund’s launch well beyond its originally planned 2024 rollout date.
The church acknowledged facing a legal challenge to the fund in July, which could extend delays further. Sources connected to the initiative indicated that while church leadership anticipated criticism, they were unprepared for the intensity and persistence of the organized opposition campaign linked to wealthy financial interests. The controversy has become emblematic of broader disputes over how British institutions address historical involvement in slavery and colonialism.
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