As soon as once more the destiny of a gaggle of islands within the Indian Ocean is focusing minds in Westminster.
“There’s no point denying it’s a mess”, a backbench Labour MP tells me, as the most recent twist within the Chagos deal unfolds.
On a day after we anticipated the Mauritian authorities to rubber stamp the plans to take over sovereignty of the archipelago from the UK, any settlement seems to be on ice.
The prime minister’s spokesperson mentioned it’s “perfectly reasonable for the US administration to consider the detail”.
Translation: the deal couldn’t recover from the road earlier than Donald Trump’s inauguration and its future would possibly now be within the steadiness.
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May Mr Trump see the Chagos settlement unravel?
Whereas Joe Biden was supportive of the deal, these near Mr Trump counsel he could not really feel the identical. Nevertheless it’s not clear how far his personal views would take him.
The settlement for the UK handy over the islands – however preserve a 99-year lease for Diego Garcia navy base – was first introduced in October, however weeks later the brand new Mauritian prime minister mentioned he had reservations in regards to the settlement.
Since then each twist and switch has sparked political debate right here.
“Why does the PM think the British people should pay to surrender something that is already ours?” Kemi Badenoch shot throughout the despatch field immediately.
Her PMQs efficiency could have been considerably scattergun, however does make a key level: the price of the Chagos deal to the British taxpayers is unknown. It might value billions of kilos.
However this is not nearly cash. Conservative and Reform MPs are pushing on the query of sovereignty and nationwide safety.
There’s additionally the not-insignificant level of what all this implies for Chagosians, a few of whom have criticised the deal saying they weren’t consulted.
One factor is for certain. There’s little probability of a deal now earlier than Mr Trump’s return to workplace.
How far an unpredictable man is keen to go to undo the deal is anybody’s guess.
A long time of uncertainty over the way forward for the Chagos islands is not over but.
