Press barred from grilling Starmer’s Chagos chum

There are just eight days to go until Donald Trump takes office. So the question much of Whitehall is asking is: will David Lammy’s Chagos deal get over the line in time? The agreement to hand the valuable cluster of islands to Mauritius has been attacked by China hawks in the U.S – including Marco Rubio, Trump’s pick for Secretary of State. He has decried the deal as ‘a serious threat to our national security interests in the Indian Ocean.’ Given those risks, why is the Labour government so intent on pressing ahead? After all, handing over British territory isn’t cheap: the current bill stands at £9 billion for UK taxpayers.

One reason why the Labour government might be keen on settling the issue is direction from the top. Keir Starmer’s close friend Philippe Sands KC is Mauritus’ chief legal adviser and a longtime agitator for Mauritian control of the islands. The pair co-founded Matrix Chambers, from which Starmer plucked his Attorney General, Richard Hermer, ennobling him back in July. Sands is a regular on various political panels, boasting at Cambridge last year about ‘humiliating’ the UK in international courts. Sadly, though, it seems these days his public appearances are a little more curated.

Philippe Sands’ appearance at the Jewish Labour conference today carries a warning note: ‘this session is open to attendees but not open to journalists.’ The subject of the discussion you ask? A conversation on ‘human rights and international law.’ You couldn’t make it up. The conference blurb breathlessly offers the chance to ‘hear from two leading barristers … at a time when the rules based international order seems threatened.’ Mr S wonders whether handing over Chagos to a China ally will help or hobble that ‘rules based’ system eh?

Sadly, it seems that the conference is not the only place where answers are in short supply. For in the Commons, Mark Francois has asked the government for a list of all meetings between Starmer and Sands on the subject of Diego Garcia since the election. The government’s response has been to direct him to the gov.uk website where details of such meetings are published. Though sadly not before 20 January…