Ben Leo delivered a huge blow to the Prime Minister.
GB News was halted in a huge blow to Starmer (Image: GB News)
GB News was halted as a fresh blow was delivered for Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Presenter Ben Leo announced that ex-military chiefs have been urging peers to reject Keir Starmer’s plan to hand the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.
The TV host explained that peers are planning a “crunch Lord’s vote later today” as they “see a High Court challenge” as they think that Starmer’s plans will be blocked. The news channel was sent a letter from retired military chiefs, which was urging Britain’s national interest to take top priority. Ben read it out, saying: “We believe that the Labour party has been disingenuous to the point of distortion and dishonesty in its presentation of the case of the transfer of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.” Ben explained that the letter is “basically asking Lords to vote down this Chagos deal.” He added: “The crucial line here is ‘we believe that the Labour party has been disingenuous to the point of distortion and dishonesty in its presentation of the case of the transfer of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius’.”
There has been uproar over Starmer’s plans (Image: Getty)
The news follows the government signing a treaty to return sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius in May last year. It will also see Britain lease back the strategically important military base on Diego Garcia.
Other experts have also criticised Starmer’s planned move. Surrendering the island would threaten the future of one of the world’s most precious and unspoilt natural environments, a think tank has warned.
The Chagos Marine Protected Area is home to almost 800 species of fish, at least 300 types of coral, 280 species of plants and ferns, and some 50 species of birds – many of which cannot be found elsewhere, and 76 of which are in danger of extinction.
Policy Exchange warned in a previous report that Mauritius’s “terrible” environmental record makes it “highly unlikely” that it will fulfil its promises to safeguard the Chagos’s natural environment.
Professor Richard Ekins, head of Policy Exchange’s Judicial Power Project, said: “There are many reasons to oppose the surrender of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius – especially on the terms that the Government has negotiated.”
They went on to add that one of the reasons is: “The treaty imposes no meaningful obligation on Mauritius to protect the environment, and the UK has no leverage if Mauritius acts badly. Parliament cannot responsibly authorise ratification of the treaty under these circumstances.”
