Tories claim government in retreat on Chagos ‘surrender’ after Donald
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Senior Tories claim the government is in retreat on its controversial Chagos Islands handover, after the latest showdown in parliament was unexpectedly postponed.
The government has withdrawn a debate and votes in the House of Lords due on Monday in the latest round of parliamentary “ping pong” on the Chagos legislation.
Welcoming the move, a jubilant shadow foreign secretary Priti Patel declared: “This is a major victory for everyone standing against Keir Starmer’s disgraceful Chagos surrender.”
Peers had been due to debate motions passed in the Commons on Tuesday overturning Lords amendments to the Diego Garcia Military Base and British Indian Ocean Territory Bill.
Earlier this month, the Lords inflicted four defeats on the government over the bill, demanding stopping payments to Mauritius, a referendum, costings and a parliamentary veto.
Last weekend, US President Donald Trump branded the deal “an act of great stupidity” and a sign of “total weakness”, prompting Kemi Badenoch to taunt Sir Keir Starmer at PMQs: “We didn’t need President Trump to tell us that. We’ve been saying that for 12 months.”
President Trump criticised the UK’s policy. Pic: Francis Chung/POLITICO via AP
In Tuesday’s Commons debate overturning the Lords amendments, rebel Labour MP Graham Stringer called on the government to pause the Chagos deal.
In response to the postponement of Monday’s debate, Ms Patel posted on X: “In the face of relentless Conservative pressure, Labour have pulled their shameful Chagos Surrender Bill from Monday’s House of Lords order paper… The deal, which hands British sovereign…
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