Sir Keir Starmer has been accused of “lying to the British public” after claiming his Chagos Islands deal would cost just £3.4 billion—with Tories claiming the real bill could be as high as £30.3 billion. The Prime Minister unveiled the 25-year economic partnership with Mauritius earlier this week, promising it would “secure long-term stability” and “right a historic wrong”.
But critics say the agreement hands over British territory to a Chinese-aligned state while binding taxpayers to a century of payments.
The Conservative Party has branded it a “Surrender Deal”, accusing Mr Starmer of misleading the public over the true cost and undermining national security in the process. Priti Patel, the Shadow Foreign Secretary, said: “Labour is lying to British taxpayers with their made-up numbers and dodgy accounting… the true cost of this surrender tax to the British public now seems set to top an eye-watering £30 billion.”
The economic partnership treaty commits Britain to extensive financial contributions, which Conservative figures say amount to a “blank cheque” to Mauritius. Kemi Badenoch, Leader of the Conservative Party, accused Mr Starmer of making the UK “a global laughing stock”, adding: “British territory handed over to a country aligned with China… all to appease the lawyers and activist elite Keir Starmer surrounds himself with.”
Sir Keir has defended the deal, calling it a “pragmatic step forward” that shows Britain “respects international law and its obligations to its partners.”
But with millions already squeezed by Labour’s £40 billion tax hikes, and uncertainty lingering over Winter Fuel Payments for pensioners, critics argue he is putting ideology before the interests of British citizens.
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