Earlier this week I was pleased to welcome an announcement from the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government that a new national Windrush Day will take place on the 22th of June every year.
The announcement comes after I asked the Government what its plans were to commemorate the upcoming 70th anniversary of the arrival of HMS Windrush, at a Westminster Hall debate on the status of the Windrush Generation and their children that I led on the 30th of April.
The annual “Windrush 70” event will be overseen by a body of British Caribbean representatives, and a Windrush Day grant of up to £500,000 will be available each year to charities and communities seeking to hold commemorative and educational events.
The 70th anniversary is a fitting moment to officially recognise Windrush Day, as an annual acknowledgement of the positive contributions made by those who have come from overseas to our common home. This is an opportunity for the British public to be informed about the positive legacy of the Windrush pioneers and help younger generations to appreciate the sacrifices that they have made for this country.
We owe the Windrush Generation a huge thank you for coming to help our nation at a time of need, for the contribution they have made to our nation for the past 70 years, and for the vital part they played in shaping modern Britain as a tolerant and multi-cultural nation.
