Chagos: The New Government Has A Choice
Statement from Friends of the British Overseas Territories
NEWS FROM FOTBOTBRITISH INDIAN OCEAN TERRITORY
Yesterday, as Parliament returned and Andy Burnham addressed the House of Commons for the first time as Prime Minister, the future of the Chagos Islands was once again firmly on the parliamentary agenda.
Shortly before the Prime Minister's own address, Foreign Office ministers were directly challenged on whether the proposed UK–Mauritius treaty was now dead.
The Government declined to say that it was.
Instead, Foreign Office Minister Uma Kumaran confirmed that funding for the treaty remains within existing Government spending plans and said that the Government would continue to work with the United States and Mauritius to “find a way forward”.
At the same time, she acknowledged that the United States must be content with the agreement before the Government proceeds with ratification.
That exchange makes clear that the proposed transfer of sovereignty remains very much a live issue, and to further confirm this, Mauritian officials have subsequently briefed that talks will shortly resume .
Ahead of Parliament’s return, on 27 August, Friends of the British Overseas Territories wrote to members of the Parliamentary Labour Party, welcoming them back to Westminster and urging the new Prime Minister and Government to take the opportunity to reconsider the proposed agreement.
Our position remains straightforward:
The Chagossian people must be placed at the heart of decisions about the future of their homeland. There should be serious consideration of resettlement on the outer islands. The exceptional strategic importance of Diego Garcia must be protected. The substantial long-term financial commitment proposed under the existing agreement deserves proper scrutiny. And the principle that the people connected to Britain’s Overseas Territories should have a decisive voice in their constitutional future must continue to matter.
A change of Prime Minister presents a genuine opportunity to look again at a decision of enormous strategic and constitutional importance.
We hope the Burnham Government will take it.
We are publishing our letter to Labour MPs in full alongside this statement.
Friends of the British Overseas Territories will continue to make the case for a settlement centred on the Chagossian people, the security of Diego Garcia and a sustainable long-term future for the islands.
You can read the published letter to Labour Members of Parliament here.
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