Dawn Butler MP

Dawn with Windrush campaigners Shadow Secretary of State for Women and Equalities Dawn Butler today announced a petition to urge Prime Minister Theresa May to resolve all outstanding cases of the Windrush scandal before her leaving office.

Dawn is encouraging all those who share her desire for justice and fairness for all those affected to sign and share the petition. 10,000 signatures are needed by 24^th June, May’s last day in office.  The petition, hosted on Change.org, is in line with Dawn’s consistent calls for justice for the Windrush generation, many of whom are now, after nearly 70 years in the UK, being faced with deportation and a hostile environment policy that was accelerated under May during her time as Home Secretary.  The petition is now live and can be signed at: http://chng.it/r8rNr4vv9K. 

Dawn said: “I’m pleased to start this important petition demanding justice for the Windrush generation, who have contributed so much to this country, and I hope that we will reach my 10,000 target as quickly as possible to send a strong message to the Prime Minister.     What has happened to the Windrush generation is an injustice and it was Theresa May herself who accelerated the hugely damaging hostile environment policy, so I hope that people in Brent and across the country will join me in signing and sharing this petition to demand Theresa May resolve all outstanding cases before she leaves office.”   

 This petition will not be the first time that Ms Butler, Labour MP for Brent Central, has advocated on the behalf of the Windrush generation. She has supported those affected by the scandal in Brent by urging local community groups to apply for aid and support services offered by the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan.  Ms Butler has also written extensively to the Prime Minister on this topic, the first time being on 20 April 2018, in a letter to the PM in which she advocated for full British citizenship for the Windrush generation, as well as an establishment of a faster and more efficient pathway for establishing citizenship.  In her most recent letter, issued on 25 June, Ms Butler called upon the PM to make a “firm commitment” to resolve all outstanding Windrush cases, saying: 

“There are reports that many such cases are still ongoing, and each of those cases is deeply impacting the life of a British citizen and their family. I believe you owe it to the Windrush generation to close these cases as soon as possible and try to put right your failings and the failings of this Government.” 

 Yet after weeks of urging with no action from the PM, and a broken promise from former Home Secretary Amber Rudd in 2018 that the cases would take only two weeks to resolve, Ms Butler has taken it upon herself to ensure fairness and reparation for those affected by the scandal by solidifying public support through her petition.