Senior Tories are tonight demanding answers over the terms of Labour’s ‘surrender’ of the Chagos Islands following the announcement of an historic deal.
After years of negotiation over the future of the Indian Ocean islands, the Government has struck an agreement to give up sovereignty of the archipelago.
Under the deal, Mauritius will assume sovereignty over the strategically important Chagos Islands, also known as the British Indian Ocean Territory.
But ministers insisted the pact secures the rights of the UK and US to operate the military base at Diego Garcia – the largest of the islands – for at least 99 years.
The Foreign Office said the status of the base – which hosts navy ships and long-range bomber aircraft – will now be undisputed.
The UK will pay a regular annual sum of money – details of which have not yet been disclosed – during the agreement and there will be funding for Chagossians.
PM Sir Keir Starmer has been slammed for a ‘dangerous capitulation’ that will hand the British territory to ‘an ally of Beijing’.
Tory ex-Cabinet minister Grant Shapps, the former defence secretary, this evening listed a series of questions about the terms of Labour’s deal.
He demanded to know what happens at the end of the 99-year agreement over the Diego Garcia military base, as well as how much taxpayers’ cash will be paid to Mauritius.
It came as it emerged that Philippe Sands KC, who has acted as Mauritius’ chief legal adviser in relation to the Chagos Islands, is a friend of Sir Keir.
In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, Mr Shapps wrote: ‘As defence secretary I was so concerned about the sovereignty of the Chagos Islands that I blocked the deal from proceeding.
‘Today, this Government has announced it’s abandoned our sovereignty of the archipelago, including the militarily essential Diego Garcia.’
Mr Shapps said there were ‘urgent questions’ for the Government to answer, including: ‘What happens after 99 years and specifically, is renewal then automatic? If not, then Starmer has just signed up to a Hong Kong style situation, which hasn’t worked out well.’
He added: ‘Exactly how much is the new rental payment to the government of Mauritius? The sums being demanded were both enormous and indexed linked.
‘The Government must release this number immediately.’
Mr Shapps also questioned Labour’s ‘capitulation’ over the Chagos Islands ‘when it comes to protecting other British assets like Gibraltar, the Falkland Islands and our two sovereign bases in Cyprus – all of which face varying levels of sovereignty challenge’.
As first reported by the Guido Fawkes website, Prof. Sands told Parliament in written evidence submitted in January this year that he has ‘acted as counsel to Mauritius since 2010 in relation to the Chagos Archipelago’.
In March, Prof. Sands submitted further evidence to a parliamentary committee that claimed the UK ‘has no sovereignty to transfer’ to Mauritius regarding the Chagos Islands.
‘As a matter of international law, the situation today is crystal clear: Mauritius is recognised to have sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago, and the UK is considered to have no rights over that territory, or even a claim,’ he wrote.
Prof. Sands was a founding member of Matrix Chambers, where Sir Keir was previously co-head of chambers, and they are reported to be close friends.
It was also the chambers of Attorney General Richard Hermer, prior to his appointment to Cabinet by Sir Keir in July.
When did Britain take control of the Chagos Islands?
In the 1700s, a small number of French colonists settled on the uninhabited Chagos Islands and developed coconut plantations there.
They imported slaves from Africa to work on the plantations.
And when French administration was replaced by the British at the end of the Napoleonic wars in the 19th century, the former slaves took over the coconut oil business and developed their own economy.
As the years progressed, several generations of Chagos islanders developed a common language and culture.
For administrative purposes, Britain grouped the Chagos Archipelago and several other islands together with Mauritius.
When and why did Britain forcibly remove the inhabitants of the Chagos Islands?
In 1965, when Mauritius began negotiating its independence, Britain paid £3million to keep Chagos and a few other islands out of the settlement.
A year later, Britain signed Diego Garcia over to the United States on a 50-year lease, for use as a military base.
It was considered a useful strategic site during the Cold War, when the sea movements of the Soviet Union were of key interest.
However, the 1,000 Chagos Islanders were never informed of the changes.
They were also not aware that once a US military base was established, their presence would not be tolerated.
In 1973, the British Government cleared the Chagos Archipelago of its inhabitants to make way for both the US base and its own installation.
Dogs, including pets, were rounded up and killed.
Some islanders who were sent to Mauritius ended up unemployed and living in slums.
The UK did grant citizenship to some Chagossians in 2002, and many of them came to live in the UK.
The US’s 50-year lease was rolled over and is now set to expire in 2036.
Its base is strategically crucial as a staging post for ships and air power.
For how long has British sovereignty of the Chagos Islands been disputed?
Chagossians have fought for years to return to the land.
A handful of islanders repeatedly took the British government to court.
In 2016, the Supreme Court ruled that residents who were forcibly removed could not return.
Mauritius has long maintained that its islands are its own.
In 2021, United Nations’ highest court has ruled that the UK’s control of the territory is ‘unlawful’.
It said the Chagos Islands should be handed over to Mauritius.
Foreign Secretary David Lammy earlier defended Labour’s deal with Mauritius over the Diego Garcia base.
He said: ‘Today’s agreement secures this vital military base for the future.
‘It will strengthen our role in safeguarding global security, shut down any possibility of the Indian Ocean being used as a dangerous illegal migration route to the UK, as well as guaranteeing our long-term relationship with Mauritius, a close Commonwealth partner.’
US President Joe Biden said he ‘applauded’ the agreement which would ‘secure the effective operation’ of the Diego Garcia military base.
But Tory leadership hopeful James Cleverly, a former foreign secretary, condemned the British Indian Ocean Territory decision.
He said: ‘Weak, weak, weak! Labour lied to get into office. Said they’d be whiter than white, said they wouldn’t put up taxes, said they’d stand up to the EU, said that they be patriotic. All lies!’
Fellow Tory leader candidate Tom Tugendhat said: ‘This is a shameful retreat undermining our security and leaving our allies exposed.’
He said the Foreign Office had ‘negotiated against Britain’s interest’ and it was ‘disgraceful that these negotiations started under our watch’.
Mr Tugendhat added: ‘Lord Cameron rightly blocked them only to see it back under David Lammy’s complete failure of leadership.’
Former immigration minister Robert Jenrick said: ‘It’s taken three months for (Sir Keir) Starmer to surrender Britain’s strategic interests.
‘This is a dangerous capitulation that will hand our territory to an ally of Beijing.’
The government said that Diego Garcia has seen a small number of migrants arrive and launch asylum claims since 2021.
It said the agreement to give Mauritius sovereignty ‘will shut down any possibility of the Indian Ocean being used as a dangerous illegal migration route to the UK, with Mauritius taking responsibility for any future arrivals.’
In a joint statement, Sir Keir and his Mauritian counterpart, Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth, said: ‘Under the terms of this treaty the United Kingdom will agree that Mauritius is sovereign over the Chagos Archipelago, including Diego Garcia.’
‘At the same time, both our countries are committed to the need… to ensure the long-term, secure and effective operation of the existing base on Diego Garcia which plays a vital role in regional and global security.’
They added that the treaty will also ‘address wrongs of the past and demonstrate the commitment of both parties to support the welfare of Chagossians’.
The agreement is still yet to be finalised, but both sides are said to have committed to completing it as quickly as possible.
A Downing Street spokesman said Sir Keir and Mr Jugnauth spoke this morning on the phone.
The spokesman said: ‘The leaders began by welcoming the political agreement achieved today between the UK and Mauritius on the exercise of sovereignty over the Chagos archipelago after two years of negotiations.
‘The Prime Minister reiterated the importance of reaching this deal to protect the continued operation of the UK/US military base on Diego Garcia.
‘He underscored his steadfast duty to national and global security which underpinned the political agreement reached today.’
President Biden said: ‘I applaud the historic agreement and conclusion of the negotiations between the Republic of Mauritius and the United Kingdom on the status of the Chagos Archipelago.
‘It is a clear demonstration that through diplomacy and partnership, countries can overcome long-standing historical challenges to reach peaceful and mutually beneficial outcomes.’
He added: ‘Diego Garcia is the site of a joint US-UK military facility that plays a vital role in national, regional, and global security.
‘It enables the United States to support operations that demonstrate our shared commitment to regional stability, provide rapid response to crises, and counter some of the most challenging security threats we face.
‘The agreement secures the effective operation of the joint facility on Diego Garcia into the next century.’