The Chagos Islands: Starmer's 'lousy deal'

The PM's adherence to 'legalism' has given Mauritius a 'gift from British taxpayers'

Demonstrators protest against the government's plans to return control of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius outside the High Court in London
Demonstrators protesting against the government's plans to return control of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius outside the High Court in London earlier this month
(Image credit: Leon Neal / Getty Images)

"Keir Starmer has secured his legacy," said The Daily Telegraph: his "shameful surrender of the Chagos Islands will go down as this nation's foreign policy nadir".

Last week, the PM signed a long-dreaded treaty that officially hands control of the Indian Ocean archipelago to Mauritius – effectively ceding a strategically vital territory that sits in an area of interest for China. To add insult to injury, once the treaty is ratified by MPs, we will pay Mauritius £101 million a year for the next 99 years to rent back a key UK-US military base on the largest island, Diego Garcia.

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