The UK last year decided to handover the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.
Keir Starmer. (Image: Getty)
Labour’s surrender of the Chagos Islands threatens 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.
Mauritius’s “terrible” environmental record makes it “highly unlikely” that it will fulfil its promises to safeguard the Chagos’s natural environment, Policy Exchange warned in a report.
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.
“One reason is that Mauritius is unlikely to protect – and may well exploit – this vital marine environment. 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.”
Under Mauritius’s plans, the waters of the Chagos Islands could be opened up to fishing, despite being currently forbidden.
On the eve of the House of Lords debating the Diego Garcia Military Base and British Indian Ocean Territory Bill, experts have warned of the “impending devastation” that the pristine marine ecosystem is likely to face if the Government hands over sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius.
Dr Yuan Yi Zhu, Policy Exchange senior fellow and report author, said: “Parliament has a responsibility to ensure that Mauritius will safeguard the natural environment of the Chagos Archipelago as well as the United Kingdom has hitherto done. Unless it is satisfied that will be the case, and there is an overwhelming amount of evidence tending to the contrary, it should refuse to ratify this draft deal.”
A treaty to return sovereignty of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius was signed by the Government in May last year. It will also see Britain lease back the strategically important military base on Diego Garcia.
The move followed long-running negotiations initiated under the previous Conservative administration, after a 2019 advisory opinion by the International Court of Justice recommended that the UK relinquish control.
A £40 million fund for Chagossians expelled from the islands has been established by the Government.
It has also agreed to pay Mauritius at least £120 million annually during the 99-year agreement, representing a total cash cost of at least £13 billion.
The Government, however, estimates the bill will be lower at around £101 million a year, while critics argue it will be much higher.
