Keir Starmer contradiction that exposes Labour Party policy as farce

There is a “Keir contradiction” to the Labour Government’s proposed giveaway of the super strategic Chagos Islands to Mauritius, a Chinese ally which never controlled the Indian Ocean territory in the first place.

The Chagos Islands include Diego Garcia, host to a hugely important UK-US military base – for which Sir ‘s deal includes a long lease – which could still be spied on by Beijing in the event of a handover, given strong Chinese ties to Mauritius.

Reform UK leader is the latest in a long line of individuals to attack the dreadful deal, saying he would rather the British territory was sold to the US than handed over to Mauritius. Heck, even foreign secretary David Lammy has conceded Washington has a veto over the deal.

To be fair to Labour, the process of looking to hand over the Chagos Islands started with the but has gathered pace with this new government. Crucially however it exposes a contradiction at the heart of Labour’s new defence policy.

Just this week, the PM announced a long-planned hike to defence budget – albeit only up to 2.5% of economic output – underwhelming but welcome nonetheless.

Yet, simultaneously, Sir Keir plans to hand over – at British taxpayer expense – a hugely strategic territory in the Indian Ocean.

Sure, the Brits and Americans keep a lease over the critical bomber base at Diego Garcia. But already the Mauritians are talking about reducing the lease, while the Chinese could always spy on the base in wartime or even pressure Mauritius to let Beijing muscle the UK and US out altogether.

What’s next for Sir Keir? Letting Gibraltar go? How about the Falklands? Or maybe strategic bases in Cyprus? On what planet would a British Prime Minister wilfully – in hand-wringing fashion – give away crucial territories like this without any good reason?

Ours is a dangerous world. One where China could be years away from invading or blockading the island democracy of Taiwan – or muscling the Philippines off Filipino territory – either of which could trigger a global war.

Presumably Sir Keir understands these dangers at one level and the need for a strong Britain with a formidable national defence. Then why – just as he announces a hike in defence spending – is he planning on weakening the liberal democratic order by giving away the Chagos Islands, over the heads of local residents one must add?

The Keir contradiction needs exposing before it is too late. It should not take the Trump White House to veto this terrible deal. Britain should tear it up immediately just as it should increase defence spending further still.