‘Government is waiting for us to die’, says Windrush scandal Army veteran
An Army veteran who faced deportation in the Windrush scandal has said that he fears the Government is “waiting for us to die off”.
Conroy Downie, 67, has helped advise thousands of people on compensation, alongside his daughter Katie Wilson-Downie.
The great-grandfather repeated calls made by others for the scheme – launched five years ago this week – to be removed from the Home Office and run independently, saying the people affected do not trust the government department.
Mr Downie, who was born in Jamaica and came to the UK as a teenager before joining the British Army, said the “system failed us” as he spoke about his homelessness and having twice faced deportation because of not having documentation on his immigration status.
With the help of his daughter and after a three-year wait, he received compensation.
Mr Downie, who lives in north-west London, said that his claim has since been reopened because he was underpaid for the years he was homeless, which he said was caused by not having the documentation needed to get council help for housing.
He estimates that he and his daughter have met thousands of people across the country in the years since the scheme opened, to raise awareness about it and help people with their applications.
He said that victims of the scandal “don’t trust the Home Office”.
He added: “How can I investigate myself? If I’m guilty and the fault is mine don’t you think I’m going to try and cover it up – if it’s an embarrassing thing and there is a big scandal?
“They need to take the compensation scheme off the Home Office and give it to an independent body.
“They’re not very good at what they’re doing right now. It’s a failure, it’s disgusting. I think they are waiting for us to die off.”
Mr Downie also said that his son was threatened with deportation, having been born in the British military hospital in Berlin while his father served in the Army.
He added: “When I joined the British Army to contribute my part to the Crown and country, in my mind’s eye I thought that, for my children, my grandchildren and my great-grandchildren, I hoped that society would give them a fair crack of the whip.”
Ms Wilson-Downie, a social worker, said she had begun supporting family to apply but then realised when she asked in the wider community that “nobody seemed to know” about the compensation scheme.
Of the 1,345 claims still being processed, 185 (14 per cent) have been in the system for at least 12 months, including 83 for more than 18 months, figures show.
The Home Office reiterated its commitment to “righting the wrongs of the Windrush scandal and making sure those affected receive the compensation they rightly deserve”.
