On May 1 this article reported that new figures showed 500 Windrush victims have been waiting more than a year for their compensation claims to be processed. Over 200 applicants have been waiting more than 18 months and five people more than two years. The scheme was set up in April 2019 but the latest official data shows that 409 – one in five – Windrush victims who have applied for compensation have so far received payments. Less than £6.2m has been paid out of the £200m promised to victims. Campaigners warn: “At this pace of resolution, a significant proportion of applicants will not live to see their claims awarded. There is an increasing sense in the community that the Home Office is counting on this to avoid paying out”. Read more here.
Now the monthly 'engagement meetings' are being criticised as a "waste of time" since going online. Campaigner Ngozi Chinegwundoh said: “There are new speakers we’re not familiar with, you can’t speak at the end, they don’t have the usual question and answer session where people can raise their hand and ask a question.” Attendees can submit questions during the sessions, but only some will receive answers at the end, leading to questioning whether the Home Office is deliberately screening queries to avoid proper scrutiny. Read more here.