Surge in Chagos arrivals prompts row over housing costs

The UK government is facing calls to support Chagos Islanders who need temporary accommodation following an influx of people coming to the country to claim their rights as British citizens.

Hillingdon Council said 152 Chagos people have arrived at Heathrow Airport in the borough so far this week, bringing the total to over 600 since last July.

The Conservative Party-run council has said it expects to spend £2 million this year on its legal duty to help homeless British Chagossians, putting pressure on strained housing resources and “cracking” its finances.

Most Chagossians come from Mauritius because they say they feel unsafe there after the UK government agreed to hand over the Chagos Islands to the country.

The UK government said Chagossians were expected to make their own accommodation arrangements before traveling and argued that the influx was “entirely unrelated” to the Chagos Islands’ agreement with Mauritius.

The Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean have long been an overseas territory of the United Kingdom, and in 2022 Chagossians were given the right to claim British citizenship.

However, this year the UK government signed an agreement to transfer the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.

Under the agreement, Britain agreed to pay £101 million annually for 99 years to retain control of the UK-US military base on Diego Garcia, the largest of the islands.

The deal did not go down well with many Chagossians, who saw it as a betrayal and wanted the United Kingdom to maintain sovereignty over the islands so they could return to their homeland.

Some fear they could be prosecuted by Mauritian authorities for supporting British sovereignty over the Chagos Archipelago.

Damien Dursonial, 35, landed at Heathrow on Wednesday this week with his wife and two children, aged four and six.

Born in Mauritius, where he worked as a police officer, Mr Dursonial saved money for two years and sold his motorbike to pay for his flight to England.

“I came to the UK because it was the only place where we could feel safe, respected and recognized as a British citizen,” Mr Dursonial said.

“As a Chagossian in Mauritius, we faced real threats when we identified as British or supported UK sovereignty over the Chagos islands.”

Mr Dursonial and his family were placed in temporary accommodation in West London by Hillingdon Council.

But he said: “The government should have done this because this all falls on the local council.

“He had to spend around £1.2 million. Yet ministers are giving the Chagos Archipelago and taxpayers’ funds to Mauritius.”

Hillingdon Council has appealed for extraordinary financial support from the government, saying it is at risk of virtual bankruptcy.

It aims to cut spending by £38 million this year; This is the biggest savings target the council has ever undertaken.

“This is in breach of the council,” Steve Tuckwell, cabinet member for planning, housing and growth at the Conservative Party-run council, told the BBC.

“This takes taxpayers’ hard-earned money away from essential services.”

Former Conservative MP Tuckwell said the council had asked ministers for funds to support the Chagossians but had received no response.

“I urge the government to do the right thing,” Tuckwell said. “Stop this burden on Hillingdon taxpayers. The bank account is draining.”

The Chagos Islands have been under British control since 1814 and were officially established as an overseas territory after the UK government purchased the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius in 1965.

The islanders were evacuated between 1967 and 1973 to create a joint UK-US military base at Diego Garcia.

The global population of Chagossians is estimated at around 10,000, with most living in Mauritius, Seychelles or the United Kingdom.

Vanessa Mandarin Calu, who works with Biot Citizen, said many Anglo-Chagossians have settled in the UK temporarily while waiting to return to their homeland.

“Our homeland is the British Overseas Territory; the government should create a clear path for Anglo-Chagossians instead of ceding our territory to another country without consulting us,” said Ms. Mandarin Calu.

Hillingdon Council opened a temporary processing center in the borough this week to deal with the increase in Chagossian arrivals.

Local authorities have a legal duty to assist eligible people who are homeless and to provide temporary accommodation for dependent families.

As British citizens, people of Chagossian descent are entitled to the same support as other homeless people holding a UK passport.

The council says it is already struggling to support asylum seekers resettled in the borough by the Home Office.

A government spokesman said: “Chagossians traveling to the UK are expected to arrange their own accommodation prior to arrival.

“Hillingdon Council has received funding to provide support where urgent local pressures arise and cannot be resolved through standard emergency measures, and the support of all local authorities is kept under constant review.

“This has nothing to do with the Diego Garcia Military Base agreement signed with Mauritius.

“In November 2022, the last government introduced a route to British citizenship for descendants of those born in the Chagos Archipelago. The Diego Garcia agreement has no bearing on this.”