Starmer’s Chagos deal to cost UK up to £30bn
PM accused of ‘lying to public’ as he announces agreement to give Indian Ocean island chain to Mauritius
Sir Keir Starmer’s deal to give away the Chagos Islands will cost the UK up to £30 billion.
On Thursday, the Prime Minister was accused of “lying to the public” as he announced the agreement to give the Indian Ocean island chain to Mauritius and rent back a key military base.
He claimed that the deal would cost £101 million annually, amounting to £3.4 billion over 99 years.
However, the true cost will probably exceed £30 billion in cash terms because of rising inflation and additional schemes to fund development projects in Mauritius.
The UK will also be obliged to give notice if it plans to launch an attack from the Diego Garcia military base under the deal, which critics opposed because of security concerns over the close ties between Mauritius, China and Russia.
Unveiling the agreement on Thursday afternoon after a failed last-ditch attempt by campaigners to block it at the High Court, Sir Keir insisted the deal was value for money because it operates on “slightly less than the running cost of an aircraft carrier minus the aircraft”.
Speaking at the Northwood military headquarters in north-west London alongside John Healey, the Defence Secretary, he said: “Now, given the significance of this facility – both the geography and the capability – you can see, as measured against an aircraft carrier’s running cost, that this is very good value for money.”
However, the Conservatives and Reform UK accused Sir Keir of misleading the public. Dame Priti Patel, the shadow foreign secretary, said: “Labour are lying to British taxpayers with their made-up numbers and dodgy accounting, and the true reality of these costs is frightening for all to see.
“We are now bound by treaty to both pay for the indignity of the surrender, and to line Mauritius’s own coffers – and the true cost of this surrender tax to the British public now seems set to top an eye-watering £30 billion.”
Sir Keir provoked further fury when he accused the Conservatives of being in the same “column” as Russia, China and Iran, whom he said had opposed the deal. Kemi Badenoch, the Tory leader, described the comment as “shameful”.
Meanwhile, Labour MPs were also aghast at the cost, which was announced amid a major rebellion over Sir Keir’s planned £5 billion welfare cuts and refusal to increase the two-child cap on benefits.
One Labour MP said Downing Street had deliberately published the treaty on the last day before a 10-day parliamentary recess to reduce scrutiny and minimise backlash from MPs.
Britain has agreed to pay rent on Diego Garcia for the next 99 years and contribute more than £1 billion in development funding. […]
The cost of the Chagos deal
| Funding Type | Details | Total |
|---|---|---|
| Rent Payments |
|
£29.2bn |
| Mauritius Development Fund | £45m/year for 25 years | £1.1bn |
| Chagossians Trust Fund | One-off payment of £40m in Year 2 | £30.3bn |
The Telegraph: continue reading
*****
Suella Braverman on the Chagos Islands: “The Mauritians are laughing at us.”
This is a dreadful betrayal of the British people and our national security.
The Mauritians are laughing at us.
Why are we surrendering our own territory and paying Billions for the privilege?
This, from the same government that cut the Winter Fuel Allowance for pensioners… https://t.co/wZwpRZ6hUm
— Suella Braverman MP (@SuellaBraverman) May 22, 2025
See Related Video Below
Chagos Islands surrender is part of UN ‘decolonisation’ agenda
Starmer has again put Britain last by giving away sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius while also agreeing to pay them £10 billion over 100 years to rent back the military base at Diego Garcia. Mauritius says it ‘ends the decolonisation process’, but it is part of a wider global ‘decolonisation’ agenda spearheaded by the UN Special Committee on Decolonisation.
WATCH:
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