If you were to hurt someone's feelings, you would owe them an apology. If you were to hit them, you may owe them compensation. And if you stole from them, you might be facing a jail sentence.

These are the basic hallmarks of our justice system. If you do wrong to others, you will face retributionA punishment given to somebody who is perceived to have done something wrong. .

Some find it ironic. After all, they say, from imperialism to slavery, partitionIn 1947, the British Raj was split into India and Pakistan. , repression and famineA widespread scarcity of food. , Britain is built on violence - and on being rewarded for it.

Take slavery as an example. Britain was responsible for the forced servitudeState of being a slave. of more than three million people in its four centuries of slave labour. There were 46,000 British slave owners.

The human impact was unspeakable. But dehumanisation was profitableSomething that can make a lot of money. . Some think that now is the time for Britain and other major European economies to pay reparationsProviding payment to make amends for a wrongdoing. for their ills.

For the Caribbean nations writing letters to European nations demanding reparations, Britain's ills amount to £18 trillion - and King Charles, whose family links to the slave trade have been heavily scrutinisedExamined closely. , is in the spotlight.

The problem cuts deep into British national identity. Leading figures in the Church of England and the Bank of England owned and exploited enslaved people. Direct ancestors of King Charles exploited slave labour on tobacco plantationsEnslaved Africans were transported to the New World to take part in a new intensive system of agriculture, growing crops such as tobacco and sugarcane. in Virginia.

Some say that Britain and other European countries already pay reparations in the form of development aid. But others argue that this aid often comes with conditions attached, or even as a loan.

Can you really charge an invoice to a whole country? Slave-owners, who benefited arguably the most from slavery, were members of the elite. But if we budget for reparations, low income Brits will disproportionately foot the bill.

It is a symbolic act, some assert. The atrocities that took place during slavery cannot be calculated as a sum of money. Compensating for the economic damage is the closest we can get.

Yes: There is no point in trying to compensate for the past in the present. Nobody who is alive now is responsible for the acts of their ancestors. And charging such a huge sum of money would only mean more suffering for low-income Brits.

No: Our economy, one of the strongest in the world, is built on the British Empire and on the slave trade. We have never offered reparations for our many atrocitiesTerrible things. or even formally apologised. It is time to pay up.

Or... Reparations are not the right way to go about what needs to be done. Britain should focus on collaboration and aid with Caribbean countries, which points both regions in the direction of a bright future, not a dark past.

Retribution - A punishment given to somebody who is perceived to have done something wrong.

Partition - In 1947, the British Raj was split into India and Pakistan.

Famine - A widespread scarcity of food. 

Servitude - State of being a slave.

Profitable - Something that can make a lot of money.

Reparations - Providing payment to make amends for a wrongdoing.

Scrutinised - Examined closely.

Plantations - Enslaved Africans were transported to the New World to take part in a new intensive system of agriculture, growing crops such as tobacco and sugarcane.

Atrocities - Terrible things.