Starmer ‘withdraws Chagos Islands bill’ after Trump’s backlash over deal

Sir Keir Starmer has withdrawn his Chagos Islands bill in the face of a shock backlash over the deal from the US, days after Donald Trump labelled it an act of “great stupidity”.

The legislation, which was set to be debated in the House of Lords on Monday, has now been delayed, amid warnings it could breach a treaty with the US that asserts the UK’s sovereignty over the archipelago.

In response, ministers have furiously accused peers of interfering with Britain’s national security and “irresponsible and reckless behaviour”.

While sources insist the bill will return, opponents claim it cannot move forward without support from the US.

The US president sent shockwaves through Downing Street this week with his attack on Sir Keir’s plans to hand the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, in a deal the government says is necessary to secure the future of the crucial UK-US Diego Garcia military base.

open image in gallery

Ministers secured US backing for the deal last year. And in February, the president told Sir Keir during a visit to the White House that he was “inclined to go with your country” and that he had “a feeling it’s going to work out very well”.

But earlier this week, the US president dramatically U-turned, using a post on his Truth Social platform to call it “an act of great stupidity”. In return, Sir Keir accused him of trying to pressure the UK to back America’s plans to take over Greenland.

The new delay follows warnings that the handover of the islands could breach a treaty with the US that asserts the UK’s sovereignty over the archipelago.

But the government has furiously accused peers of interfering with Britain’s national security, and “irresponsible and reckless behaviour”.

The legislation is intended to provide a firm legal basis for the operation of the strategically important Diego Garcia Military Base, which has been used by UK and US forces since it was built on the islands in the 1970s. Ministers have claimed the deal is necessary because international court rulings in favour of Mauritian claims to sovereignty had threatened the future of the facility.

The proposed deal would lead Britain to give up the territory and lease back the base – a move the Conservatives have suggested would break a UK-US treaty signed in 1966, which enshrines the UK’s sovereignty over the archipelago.

With promised updates to the 1966 agreement yet to materialise, the Tories tabled a motion in the Lords on Friday morning, demanding a delay in the treaty’s ratification for fear of otherwise breaking international law.

The legislation underpinning the deal had been set to go back to the upper chamber for further scrutiny on Monday, but that will no longer happen.

open image in gallery

Tory leader Kemi Badenoch accused Keir Starmer of trying “to hide behind the cover of international law, now the Conservatives are exposing that his shameful surrender may be illegal.”

Shadow foreign secretary Dame Priti Patel said: “He is happy to hand over British sovereign territory and £35bn of taxpayers’ money to an ally of China – even if it conflicts with international law.

“As a lawyer, he should know better. But his desire to appease Beijing clouds his judgement, as we saw with his decision to approve the Chinese spy hub super embassy this week.”

A government spokesperson told The Independent: “The government remains fully committed to the deal to secure the joint UK-US base on Diego Garcia, which is vital for our national security.

“This is irresponsible and reckless behaviour by peers, whose role is to check legislation, not interfere with our national security priorities.”