Fury as Keir Starmer ally says Labour is ‘determined’ to complete Chagos deal | Politics | News
Lord Hermer comments to MPs on the Justice Committee (Image: Parliament TV)
A close ally of Sir Keir Starmer has said Labor is “committed” to finalizing the Chagos Islands deal. The controversial agreement to hand over the British Indian Ocean Territory to Mauritius by paying billions of dollars for the lease back of the US-UK Diego Garcia joint military base stalled after Donald Trump withdrew his support.
But Attorney-General Lord Hermer stressed he hoped the deal would be completed “in the coming weeks and months”. His statements to MPs in the Justice Committee were appreciated by those who criticized the agreement.
Sir Keir Starmer faces criticism over Chagos deal (Image: Getty)
Tory Shadow Foreign Secretary Dame Priti Patel said: “Keir Starmer and Richard Hermer’s deal to hand over Chagos should be consigned to the ash heap of history.
“Hard-pressed British taxpayers have no intention of handing over more than £35bn of their cash for this nonsense, especially when it threatens our national security.
“Andy Burnham or whoever the next Prime Minister is must stop pursuing this terrible deal. The Conservatives will continue to fight against it for as long as it takes.”
Reform UK’s Robert Jenrick added: “Labour’s determination to deliver this surrender deal shows exactly where the party’s priorities lie: handing over billions of dollars to a foreign country while British pensioners, farmers and businesses pay the price.
“Even in his last days, Lord Hermer is trying to subvert our national interests. He may soon return to openly representing Britain’s enemies as a lawyer. Get well soon; he will not be missed.”
The deal was shelved earlier this year after it was deemed “an act of complete weakness” by the US president.
But Lord Hermer insisted the Chagos deal, which has also been criticized by the Conservatives, was “largely in our national interest”.
Speaking today, he said: “The negotiations that we picked up from the last Conservative government, which were very developed negotiations, were started and we continued with them because of our national security analysis as to the importance of the base of Diego Garcia. That is what it was about, that is what it has remained about.
“I hope that we will be able to sign the agreement in the coming weeks and months because it is in this country’s national interest to do so because of our national security concerns and the importance of the base in that part of the world.
“As you know, although the United States began to support the agreement under President Trump, there has been a change of position. We are determined to try to achieve this.”
The government has insisted the deal is necessary to secure the future of the Diego Garcia military base after the International Court of Justice’s advisory ruling in 2019 backed Mauritius’ sovereignty claims over the islands.
But despite Lord Hermer’s comments, it is unclear whether the Prime Minister’s successor will go ahead with the deal.
An AGO spokesman said: “The Attorney-General reflected the Government’s long-standing position, which was that the Government remains committed to the agreement with Mauritius as the best way to safeguard the long-term future of the base and continues to work closely with the US and Mauritius on next steps.
“The Government will bring the Bill back to Parliament for approval as soon as possible and we will continue to operate as normal for now.”
