Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

UK-Mauritius Treaty

Tuesday 25 February 2025 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Labour party's determination to give away vital strategic territory in the Chagos islands is disputed by the Minister.
  • The deal does not give away the base on Diego Garcia but secures its operation and future.
  • Safeguards are in place to prevent Chinese installations on Diego Garcia that could compromise western naval security.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Gagan Mohindra Con South West Hertfordshire
Foreign Affairs
Context

The Conservative MP questions the potential security implications of giving away vital strategic territory to Mauritius.

Question

The Labour party’s determination to give away vital strategic territory in the Chagos islands, seemingly to satisfy one of the Prime Minister’s lawyer friends over our American allies, is baffling to my colleagues on the Conservative Benches. Does the Minister agree that it is far more important to maintain our special relationship with the US and the new Trump Administration than to pay billions of pounds in the face of the self-inflicted, worsening domestic economic situation, in order to give the Chinese Government access to that vital region?

Answer from Stephen Doughty

There are so many things in the hon. Gentleman’s question that I disagree with that I do not know quite where to start. We are not giving away the base on Diego Garcia—the deal secures that base. If there was not a problem with its operation and its future, why did his Government start negotiations on it?

Partly answered

Not addressed: The questioner's claim about prioritizing US relations over Chinese access.

How: Disagreement, Challenge To The Questioner

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Q2 Lee Anderson Reform Ashfield
Defence Foreign Affairs
Context

The Reform Party member asks about safeguards in the deal to prevent Chinese installations on Diego Garcia.

Question

The Minister will be aware that the Chinese have a smart city situated in Mauritius, so what safeguards are in the deal to prevent Chinese installations on Diego Garcia that could compromise our western naval security?

Answer from Stephen Doughty

We are absolutely clear that we will retain full control over Diego Garcia, and will have robust provisions to keep adversaries out. There will be unrestricted access to and use of the base for the UK and the US, a buffer zone around Diego Garcia, a comprehensive mechanism to ensure that no activity in the outer islands threatens base operations and a ban on the presence of any foreign security forces.

Answered
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