A Green Party candidate advocating for Britain to pay trillions of pounds in slavery reparations has been revealed to be descended from a Nigerian royal family that historically traded slaves. Antoinette Fernandez, the party's 'reparations officer' for its Global Majority Greens group, is the daughter of a billionaire oil baron who was once one of Africa's richest men.
Background and Family Ties
Ms Fernandez, who is standing for election in London under Zack Polanski's party, is the daughter of the Queen Mother of Lagos and is often referred to as a 'princess' in Nigerian media. Her mother is Abiola Dosunmu, and her father was Antonio Deinde Fernandez, a late business magnate and UN ambassador who amassed a fortune in oil, gas, and mining, with a reported net worth of $8.7 billion (£6.5 billion) at his death in 2015.
Through her mother, Ms Fernandez is a descendant of the Obas (kings) of Lagos, some of whom historians describe as 'major' slave traders who made 'lucrative commissions from slave deals'. One of her ancient relatives personally owned 1,400 slaves, and another reportedly brought back slaves that had been sent to Brazil to build houses in Lagos, according to historians. The family's wealth from the slave trade was used to purchase 'velvet clothes, royal umbrellas, hats, and stylish robes'.
Political Controversy
On Monday, the Conservatives and Reform UK criticised Ms Fernandez, branding her the 'ultimate hypocrite' for demanding British taxpayers pay reparations for the transatlantic slave trade while benefiting from a family history tied to it. Laila Cunningham, Reform UK's London mayoral candidate, said: 'While Brits are crushed by the cost-of-living crisis, she demands we fork out billions more in slave reparations, even though Britain has already spent tens of billions wiping out the slave trade.'
The Green Party defended Ms Fernandez, calling reporting on her lineage 'racist' and a 'bad-faith attempt to undermine the case for reparative justice'. Britain abolished the slave trade in 1807 and spent millions of pounds—billions in today's money—and thousands of sailors' lives to end the practice worldwide.
Reparations Debate
In March, the UN voted in favour of former colonial powers paying reparations for slavery, potentially up to £18 trillion according to a UN judge in 2023. After the vote, Ms Fernandez stated: 'Britain and the US in particular need to acknowledge the inhumane crimes they inflicted on the African people for centuries and the ongoing impact of those crimes on the Global South.'
Ms Fernandez, who has described her background as 'privileged' and boarded at Millfield School in Somerset (costing over £60,000 a year), ran for the Greens in the 2024 General Election and stood for deputy leader in 2025. She is currently standing as a councillor for Lea Bridge in Hackney, east London, in the upcoming local elections.
Conservative Party chairman Kevin Hollinrake said her candidacy 'fits a pattern' for the Green Party, adding: 'The Greens are not a serious political force. They have been captured by hard-Left activism and student politics.' Ms Fernandez was approached for comment but did not respond.
