Recommendation 13

The Department told us it wanted to ensure all those potentially eligible to apply to the scheme could do so.47 This committee recommended in March 2019 that the Department extend its historical reviews “beyond Caribbean Commonwealth nationals to include other Commonwealth nationals who may have been wrongfully detained, removed or sanctioned under the compliant environment”. But, in June 2019, the Department rejected this recommendation and referred to it having already ‘conducted extensive outreach’ to raise awareness.48 Despite the Department’s apparent efforts, The National Audit Office reported in May 2021 that, in a survey by the Department, more than half of respondents 35 Q 72 36 Qq 72–73 37 Qq 23, 33 38 Qq 25, 29, 43, 49, 53, 57, 60 39 Qq 19–20, 68 40 Qq 18–19 41 Qq 18–19 42 Q 25 43 C&AG’s Report, para 9 44 C&AG’s Report, para 1.11 45 Q 25 (although the department stated 2,369, we understand it would have meant 2,367, which was the latest figure at the time according to Windrush Compensation Scheme data: May 2021 – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk), accessed 29 June 2021) 46 Windrush Compensation Scheme data: May 2021 – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk), accessed 29 June 2021 47 Qq 46, 49 48 HM Treasury, Government response to the Committee of Public Accounts on the Eighty-Second and the Eighty- Sixth to the Ninety-Second reports from Session 2017–19, CP 113, June 2019 Windrush Compensation Scheme 11 thought the scheme was relevant only to those from the Caribbean.49 We heard that the Department had started its community fund to support outreach work only in December 2020, and therefore asked why there had been such a delay.50 The Department recognised that, in hindsight, it ‘could have been quicker off the mark’ with its efforts to engage with other affected communities.51 It assured us it was actively looking to ensure it promoted the scheme across a broader range of communities, such as those from South Asia and West Africa, through its outreach events and community fund.52 The Dep