Sir Keir Starmer is covering Britain in a darkness that it does not deserve.
Keir Starmer has entered into a dangerous deal (Image: PA)
Sir Keir Starmer seems intent on assisting the Chinese Communist Party. Either that or he’s stupid beyond comprehension. How else are we to make sense of the catastrophic Chagos Islands deal his Government has just pushed through? The facts speak for themselves: Britain has voluntarily handed over its own sovereign territory — the Chagos Archipelago — to Mauritius, a country more than 2,000 miles away, with no practical claim and no capacity to govern or defend it.
At the heart of this archipelago sits Diego Garcia, home to one of the most strategically vital US and UK military bases in the world. We were using it for free. Now, thanks to Starmer, we’ll be paying at least £120 million per year for the next 99 years, plus an additional £1.125 billion in so-called “economic development” aid.
Let’s call this what it is — an absolute sellout. A strategic disaster that seems to have been built on lies issued to the unsuspecting British public.
In his May 22 announcement, Starmer had the gall to claim that the Chagos deal was opposed by “China, Russia, and Iran,” and suggested that anyone critical of it was siding with our enemies. But now we know the truth: China didn’t oppose the deal — it backed it. Enthusiastically.
The Deputy Prime Minister of Mauritius publicly thanked China for its “unwavering support.” Chinese diplomats hailed the handover as a “historic achievement.” And in a 2018 submission to the International Court of Justice, China expressed full support for a “quest for decolonisation” by Mauritius.
In other words, China has been actively lobbying for this handover all along. So not only did Starmer possibly mislead the British public — he smeared anyone who dared to question this act of surrender as an agent of Beijing, while it turns out he was the one benefitting China.
This deal isn’t about decolonisation. It’s about deconstruction — the piecemeal dismantling of Britain’s global presence and strategic autonomy. Chagos is a lynchpin in the defence of the West’s interests in the Indian Ocean, a vital hub in an increasingly volatile part of the world.
It’s no coincidence that China, which has been aggressively expanding its influence in the Indo-Pacific, supports the transfer. They see what our Prime Minister does not. This is a massive win for Beijing.
And now, the precedent has been set. If we are prepared to hand over the Chagos Islands — despite strategic necessity, despite the objections of the Chagossian people themselves, who want to remain under British control — what’s next? Will Spain now renew its claim to Gibraltar? Will Argentina be emboldened to push again for the Falklands?
Perhaps the most alarming consequence of this reckless deal is the precedent it sets on the global stage — particularly for China. By handing over sovereign British territory without a fight, we’ve signalled to the world that the UK no longer has the will to defend its own holdings.
Beijing will see this as a green light to intensify its territorial ambitions, from Taiwan to the South China Sea, arguing that if Britain can “decolonise” the Chagos Islands under foreign pressure, then surely China can reclaim territories it disputes.
Starmer hasn’t just weakened Britain’s position — he’s emboldened regimes that thrive on the West’s appeasement and decline.
Starmer’s Chagos deal is not just a betrayal of our allies and of British overseas citizens. It is a national humiliation. It signals to the world that Britain is weak, apologetic, and willing to trade away its own territory for a few headlines about “decolonisation” — a term China has co-opted for its own geopolitical ends.
And let us not forget the staggering cost. Over £30 billion, when all is said and done, to rent back a base we built, on land we owned, to defend a region we helped keep stable.
It’s the international equivalent of selling your house, then renting the garage back at ten times the market rate — and calling it progressive policy.
Because this deal is not just misguided — it’s dangerous. It undermines our alliances, emboldens our adversaries, and shreds any remaining notion of Britain as a serious global player.
If this is what Keir Starmer calls diplomacy, we are in deep trouble. If this is what he calls sovereignty, he doesn’t understand the word. And if this is what he calls “standing up to China,” then God help us all — because from where the rest of the world is standing, it looks a lot like Britain just took a knee.
