No10 forced to act after Keir Starmer’s Falkland claim about uncle turns out to be false.H
No10 has moved to clarify after confusion and accusations emerged in light of the Prime Minister’s claim his uncle was torpedoed in the Falklands War.
Chagos Archipelago: UK to give up sovereignty of islands
Number 10 have been forced to clarify a claim made by Sir Keir Starmer that his uncle was “torpedoed” during the Falklands War.
Today’s Prime Ministers Question (PMQs) saw Sir Keir grilled over the future of the Falkland Islands following the surrender of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.
Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey asked the PM to: “Ensure that British citizens, fishing off the Falklands, can sail proudly under the Union Jack.”
Starmer responded instantaneously, claiming that his uncle had nearly lost his life in Falklands War “when his ship was torpedoed defending the Falklands.”
Starmer reiterated: “They are British and they will remain British, it is personal to me.”
But the remarks left many confused, given that no British ship was torpedoed in the conflict. Only one Argentine ship, the Belgrano, was hit in this way.
READ MORE ‘I’m an ex-soldier – Argentina would not be able to reclaim the Falklands’
No10 has moved to clarify the comments, insisting that Sir Keir misspoke, having meant to say that his uncle was onboard a vessel that was bombed.
The Prime Minister’s uncle was aboard the British frigate HMS Antelope which was sunk during the conflict to reclaim the islands.
Speaking to the Telegraph last year, Starmer lambasted the ferocity of the Argentine bombers, as they targeted ships off of the shore of the islands in a strait that came to be known as “bomb alley.”
In the piece and in response to several questions today, the PM praised the extraordinary bravery and sacrifice of our Armed Forces and vowed that the Falkland Islands will remain under British control.
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The issue over sovereignty has bubbled under the surface since the Argentine surrender after 74 days of conflict in 1982.
In recent years, the issue has come to be an important one in Argentine politics, with President Javier Milei claiming that his government was working on a “roadmap to sovereignty” of the disputed territory.
The British hold a significant military presence on and around the islands and the islands inhabitants have in the past voted overwhelmingly to remain as part of the UK.
A 2013 referendum on the sovereignty of the islands saw 1,513 of 1,517 voters state that they wished to remain part of the UK.
