The BritCard:
Identity First. Justice Later.
Press
Release | 15 June 2025
Issued by The Reparation Nation Limited
The
Reparation Nation Limited
today launches a national campaign in support of the UK Government’s BritCard
digital identity initiative. We believe the BritCard can help build a fairer
future by enabling accurate, voluntary identification of race and ethnicity—while
remaining crystal clear that the UK Government will not be responsible for
delivering reparatory justice.
Clarification
of Roles
The BritCard
is a means of verification, not reparation.
- It is a tool to establish secure,
transparent identity, particularly for people historically affected by
administrative injustice, such as the Windrush generation.
- Reparatory justice will be delivered by a future,
Black-led institution, emerging from within the communities it
serves—not by the British state.
- The role of the UK Government is to
build an inclusive, secure digital ID system with the ethical
inclusion of Race and Ethnicity Codes, enabling targeted community
development.
Our Position
in Brief
We call for the
BritCard system to include:
✅
Voluntary self-declaration of Race and Ethnicity using standardised UK
codes (e.g. IC codes, ONS18).
✅ multi-criteria
verification for reparatory eligibility:
1. place of birth,
2. lineage,
3. appearance,
4. cultural affiliation,
5. Ancestry.
✅ Legal
and community safeguards to prevent false claims or misuse of race-based
identity.
✅ Firewalled
data access—no sharing with employers, landlords, or police without
consent.
Why It
Matters
This is a
turning point.
- The BritCard, if built with
the right protections, can prevent future Windrush-style injustices.
- It lays the groundwork for reparatory
systems, which will be managed by a separate, Black-led authority
empowered by trusted data—not by government discretion.
“We are
not asking the UK Government to deliver justice. We are asking it to help
identify those who deserve it—and then step aside.”
Campaign
Launch
Over the summer
of 2025, The Reparation Nation will engage:
- Black-led organisations
- Legal scholars and technologists
- Community leaders and civil society
advocates
Together, we
will build consensus, pressure for safeguards, and prepare for
the emergence of a new reparatory institution.
Contact:
📧
TheReparationNation@gmail.com
Government Briefing Document
Title: The BritCard – A
Foundational Tool for Racial Equity and Reparatory Readiness
Submitted by: The Reparation Nation Limited
Date: 15 June 2025
Purpose of
This Document
This briefing
outlines why The Reparation Nation Limited supports the UK Government’s
BritCard proposal, and how its implementation with racial and ethnic
identifiers can serve:
- The UK's legal and ethical
obligations under the Equality Act 2010 and Windrush Lessons Learned
Review.
- Future community-led delivery of
reparatory justice for Black and Mixed-Black people in the UK.
We do not
expect the UK Government to deliver reparatory justice. We ask only that it
enables fair, transparent identification through the BritCard, laying the
groundwork for future community-driven solutions.
Summary of
Request
We urge the UK
Government to:
- Include voluntary Race and
Ethnicity Codes (ONS18, IC Codes) in the BritCard.
- Protect this data with strict
access limitations and community-informed safeguards.
- Recognise this inclusion as a
neutral administrative act that enables both statutory equality monitoring
and civil society-led reparatory development.
Why This is
Good for Government
1.
Strengthens Public Trust and Prevents Future Scandals
- Avoids future injustices like
Windrush by giving residents secure digital proof of identity and rights.
- Reduces administrative ambiguity in
immigration, benefits, and access to public services.
2. Delivers
on Legal Mandates
- Enhances the Government's ability
to comply with the Public Sector Equality Duty.
- Supports measurable monitoring of
racial disparities without adding extra reporting burdens.
3. Supports
Digital Modernisation
- Aligns with the vision of a
digital-first public administration.
- Reduces paperwork, fraud, and
manual verification costs.
4.
Facilitates External Equity Efforts Without Government Liability
- Enables trusted organisations to
identify and engage marginalised groups using secure, standardised
methods.
- Preserves the Government’s
neutrality in the delivery of race-based programmes while
supporting their development.
5. Signals
Moral Leadership
- Shows the UK is willing to apply
lessons from its colonial past by supporting mechanisms of truth, clarity,
and accountability.
How Reparations
Fit In
The BritCard
will not deliver reparations.
Instead, it
provides the foundational data infrastructure to:
- Identify individuals eligible for
future reparatory support.
- Allow Black-led organisations to
verify claims fairly and consistently.
- Empower civil society to build
durable, evidence-based justice programmes.
This separation
of identity verification (state) and justice delivery (community) ensures
fairness and integrity.
Key Features
We Recommend
|
Feature |
Description |
|
Voluntary
Race Declaration |
Individuals
choose to self-identify using recognised codes. |
|
Multi-Criteria
Verification |
Reparatory
programmes use lineage, appearance, etc. |
|
Secure Data
Separation |
Race data
separated from immigration or benefits data. |
|
Community
Oversight |
A Race Code
Council to advise on best practices. |
|
Fraud
Prevention |
Legal
penalties for false race-based declarations. |
Next Steps
We seek a
meeting or written response from relevant government departments to:
- Discuss implementation pathways.
- Explore ethical data models.
- Coordinate with civil society on
rollout and safeguards.
Contact:
The Reparation Nation Limited
TheReparationNation@gmail.com
“We believe in fairness through clarity. The
BritCard, if implemented ethically, is a tool of inclusion, protection, and
future justice.”
