Pressure grows on Starmer to ditch ‘terrible’ plan to hand Chagos Islands to Mauritius as Labour MPs say it should be axed
Pressure has mounted on Sir Keir Starmer to abandon his ‘terrible’ plan to hand over the Chagos Islands, amid growing opposition from his own Labor MPs.
The Prime Minister has faced calls to heed Donald Trump’s concerns and not just pause the plan but cancel it entirely.
Senior Labor MP Dan Carden said: ‘This is not about obeying Trump; It’s about using common sense and doing what’s right for the country.’
The claim follows surprise news on Friday that Sir Keir had moved the next stage of legislation needed to approve the disputed site, including a joint UK/US military base, to Mauritius.
The bill was due to be debated in the House of Lords on Monday but was withdrawn just days after the US president strongly opposed the handover.
This also came after his Tory colleagues demanded to know whether the agreement was in line with international law; The Conservative Party warned that the agreement would violate the UN agreement signed between the United Kingdom and the United States in 1966, which stated that “the region will remain under the sovereignty of the United Kingdom.”
But the Government insists it will still go ahead with the deal, which critics say could cost as much as £35bn – more than 10 times the Government’s estimate – for the UK to pay Mauritius.
A Government spokesman said: ‘The Government remains fully committed to the agreement to secure the joint UK-US base at Diego Garcia, which is vital to our national security.’
‘This is irresponsible and reckless behavior by our colleagues whose job it is to control legislation and not interfere with our national security priorities.’
Pressure has mounted on Sir Keir Starmer to abandon his ‘terrible’ plan to hand over the Chagos Islands in the face of growing opposition from his own Labor MPs. Image: Diego Garcia, the largest of the islands
Members of the Chagossian community gather in Parliament Square in June 2025 to protest the UK’s transfer of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius
The plea follows surprise news on Friday that Sir Keir had moved the next stage of legislation needed to approve the disputed territory, which includes a joint UK/US military base, to Mauritius.
But the Mail on Sunday understands some Labor MPs have growing concerns about the plan and now want it to be scrapped altogether.
Mr Carden, who has so far abstained from the proposal, came out completely opposed to it last night.
He said: ‘The government must abandon the Chagos agreement.
‘National security and the sovereignty of British territories must be our top priority.
‘The government must seize this victory from the clutches of surrender.’
Liverpool Walton MP added: ‘The world has changed since the Government reached this agreement with Mauritius in October 2024….
‘This is not the time to risk national security or sovereignty.
‘We must use common sense and protect ourselves and the rights of the Chagossians who trust us to do the right thing.’
Former Labor Secretary Graham Stringer, who has already criticized the handover, described the deal as ‘terrible’ and urged Sir Keir to reconsider.
He said: Now that we know the US administration is firmly against it, I now expect more Labor colleagues to oppose this terrible plan.
‘No Labor candidate at the next election will proudly put in their election leaflets how we gave £35bn to Mauritius while our health service and military are strapped for money.’
The Blackley and Middleton South MP added: ‘Starmer needs to turn this “pause” in legislation into ending this terrible idea altogether.’
Mr Trump last week branded Britain’s plan to cede sovereignty over the Chagos Islands ‘an act of gross stupidity’, despite having previously approved it, to the disappointment of Labor ministers.
In the House of Commons, Sir Keir made clear that Mr Trump had criticized the Chagos agreement as a way to put pressure on him over the UK’s opposition to the US president’s ambitions to seize Greenland.
