Andy Burnham just broke with the King over a slavery apology

King Charles will not say sorry for slavery.

And that puts him on a different page from his own Prime Minister.

Charles opens the Commonwealth summit in a few days. Buckingham Palace says he will speak about the slave trade with what it calls unflinching honesty and sincere sorrow. But he will stop short of a formal apology.

Andy Burnham, the Prime Minister, says he is open to doing exactly that.

So two of the most senior people in Britain have just given two different answers to the same question. And nobody has said they agreed on this first.

Let's break down what each one actually said.

The Palace statement came a few hours ago. A Palace official says quote "It would not be appropriate for him to address matters of particular policy relating to the UK Government's position".

So that's the Palace drawing a hard line. The King speaks about history. The government decides policy. Two different jobs.

Now here's Burnham. About a day ago, he wrote a piece in the Guardian newspaper. He said Britain is offering what he called a structured dialogue with people affected by the slave trade.

And he said a formal apology could be part of that.

He wrote that listening to calls for a formal apology on behalf of the British state will form an important part of that process, and that he is open to them.

So the Prime Minister just put an apology on the table. Before this, it wasn't.

But he drew his own line too. No money.

He ruled out paying reparations. He wrote that British people today cannot be blamed for historical wrongs that happened under different laws, in a different age, when they played no part in them.

So here's where that leaves things. Burnham will consider saying sorry. He won't consider paying for it.

Did the Palace see this coming? It says yes. The Palace says it was told about Burnham's new position in good time, and that nothing in the King's speech or his programme needed to change.

And this isn't new ground for the King. He has already faced this question in person this week, on visits to the Bahamas and Guyana. Protesters met him calling for an apology and reparations. In the Bahamas, he spoke of what he called the great suffering and injustices of the past. He did not apologise there either.

Now, why does this matter so much right now? Because of where the summit is happening.

The Commonwealth has 56 member nations. The summit is in Antigua and Barbuda. And Caribbean and West African members have pushed for a formal British apology for years. Britain has never given one. It has never agreed to pay reparations either.

So how are Caribbean leaders reacting? Carefully.

Mia Mottley, the Prime Minister of Barbados, says she recognises and appreciates Burnham's openness to an apology. But she also says real differences remain between Britain and Caribbean governments over reparations.

Gaston Browne, the Prime Minister of Antigua and Barbuda, says the Caribbean's longstanding position on reparatory justice has not changed.

So both leaders are treating this as a step. Not as the answer.

And in Britain? The reaction splits the other way entirely.

Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative leader, says there is no need to revisit the question of an apology at all.

Rupert Lowe, the Restore Britain leader and MP for Great Yarmouth, went further. He said Burnham apologising would make him quote "even more pathetic than we ever imagined".

He also said Britain has nothing to apologise for, at all.

Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, says Britain has already paid the price for its role in the slave trade.

And here's some history worth knowing. Britain banned the slave trade in 1807. It abolished slavery across the empire in 1833.

Burnham's plan isn't just words, either. He says he will work with other wealthy nations and investors to help vulnerable countries repay debt over longer periods, at lower interest rates. Former Prime Minister Gordon Brown is helping run that work.

So what don't we know?

We don't know if the King and the Prime Minister spoke about any of this before the Caribbean tour began. We don't know if Burnham will push for a formal apology vote or statement once the summit opens. And we don't know if Caribbean leaders will accept Burnham's structured dialogue as enough, or keep pushing past it.

The King opens the summit with sorrow, but no apology.

The Prime Minister is willing to go where the King will not.